Stirring Emotions
by simplegirl42
Summary: It didn't take much interaction for Saryie to see that Sai was different. He was quiet, analytical, and aloof. He caught her eye and it will be awhile before he can understand what he's feeling in return. Saryie, on the other hand, continues to pursue her goal in life and complete missions with her team. Follows Naruto's timeline, doesn't make major changes to Naruto's life. OCs.
1. Chapter 1

**Well this is my new story. I hope you will like it. It is set around after season 2 of Naruto Shippuden when Team Kakashi came back from an unsuccessful mission of trying to retrieve Sasuke. This story contains my own characters that I have created and developed for a long time. I wish not to alter the Naruto's time line, I will be following the script of the seasons, but we'll see twist and turns through my main characters stories that do not involve Naruto.**

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 **Stirring Emotions**

 **Chapter 1**

It would be a beautiful day. The sun was out with barely any clouds in the sky. The weather was nice, not too dry, not too humid; it was perfect.

She would have loved to sit by the river, enjoying the coolness of its touch when she felt exhausted from training. But there were other plans for today; other plans that excited her just as much. She loved when she got called out on missions. They were her passion. Kicking butt and taking names is what she thrived on.

She was maneuvering her way through the village in her black spandex shorts and light blue short-sleeve top. Her brown hair was tied back in a ponytail, a braid hanging loose on the right side of her head. Her forehead protector was secured tightly, smashing her bangs to her forehead. She had a shuriken pouch slung around her waist and a kunai holster on her left leg. Bandages were wrapped around her right leg before meeting her standard ninja boots.

She was on her way to meet her teammates at Konoha gate. They had received a mission early this morning and were debriefed on it. It was a simple mission really. It was what her team was use to. A rescue and retrieval mission.

The goal was to rescue a lord's son that was being held at ransom by some criminal ninja. Then once the son was securely rescued; they bring him back to Konoha to his distraught father. It was a simple B-rank mission. Nothing that her team of chunin can't handle.

Her team had agreed to meet at the gates, after stocking up on their gear for the mission. The rendezvous point was to take place at noon, east of the Hidden Leaf Village. She was pumped for the mission; she knew it wouldn't take much out of her day, but still she was excited about it.

Too preoccupied in her thoughts, she ran unexpectedly into a civilian who was not watching where he was going. Upon closer inspection, the civilian looked to be a painter. He was a pale man with jet black hair that reached his ears. He wore a plain dark turtle neck shirt and tan pants.

The man had dropped his supplies upon contact, and went to pick them up. She mumbled an apology to him as she too helped the man retrieve his things. He took his belongs from her hands, finally glancing up at this her. His eyes roaming slowly up her legs to her face as they both stood up.

"My, you have abnormally thick legs," was his blunt greeting.

And swiftly, without hesitation, she went to kick at the man who commented on her form.

The man's quick reflexes blocked her attempt, his supplies once again falling to the ground. His eyes keenly eyeing her and the situation; he was calculating her next move.

She was surprised at his quick reaction, knowing her kick wasn't easily blocked, especially from a civilian. A smirk formed on her lips, even as this stranger held her leg in his hand.

"There for abnormally strong kicks," she commented as she relaxed her leg, her whole demeanor changing.

He took the cue, noticing her relaxed features that were no longer enraged. He let her go and as she straightened herself, he quickly grabbed his supplies from the ground.

"Those were mighty quick reflexes; you must be a shinobi."

"I am," came his reply, his voice monotone as he stood up with his supplies in hand.

"Where's your headband?" she inquired, questionably, looking over his civilian clothing.

"I'm off work for today."

"That must be nice. It's a nice day to have off, I know Michi is going to complain about it," she rambled, feeling open to this stranger, smiling slightly. "I'm Saryie."

"Sai."

"Sai? Nice name. I like it. Short and simple," Saryie commented, her tone upbeat and positive.

"Your name is rather odd," Sai commented, his face blank.

Saryie smirked at his comment as she moved to step pass him, beginning to walk away.

"I guess my name is a little odd. I'll see you around chicken legs," Saryie commented, saying farewell to Sai.

Saryie moved swiftly, knowing that after stopping with Sai, she had time to make up. This wasn't a problem for her. She didn't mind moving fast as she headed over to Konoha's gates at a quickening pace. There is where her team members were waiting patiently. As Saryie approached, she spotted her male companion and female companion.

Her male companion with blue hair was named Michi. He had dark colored eyes and his forehead protector was also fastened to his forehead like Saryie's. He had an angled face with a strong chin the supported his blue goatee.

He had a scar that laid between his eyes at the start of his nose. His ears were pierced and stretched a bit as he sat on the ground, in his sporty tan shorts and rugged brown sleeveless jacket that frayed at the seams. His jacket had a distinct symbol that aligned his back with red diamond shapes. His jacket covered his netted shirt that was on underneath. His kunai holster was secured on the left side on his leg. He wore standard shinobi gloves and shoes. He seemed rather unmotivated to get up from his position, making it fairly obvious to Saryie that he was tired of waiting.

Her female teammate, Azumi, stood with her arms cross. She stood tall, casting a long shadow. She was lanky and covered in a ivory poncho from her neck to her knees. Under it, she wore standard ninja pants and shoes. Her forearms to her hands were wrapped in bandages as she also wore a black short-sleeve shirt underneath her poncho. Her poncho displayed her shinobi headband and it hid her weapons effectively as well as her figure. Her brown hair was tied in a low bun at the back of her head and she sported a rope as a headband. Azumi had noticed Saryie's arrival immediately, her stare solemn-looking.

"You're late," Azumi commented, dryly.

"No, I'm on time," Saryie defended, evenly as she landed in front of her two teammates.

"Not this time, check the clock," Michi drone from the ground.

Saryie check and cursed. "I'm just a minute late. I'm normally on time," Saryie stated.

"You're strangely not on time. Let's go. We have a mission to complete. Time is of the essence," Azumi stated, turning away from the pointless argument.

Saryie rolled her eyes at her teammate's behavior as Michi got up slowly.

"Traitor," Saryie called as she nudged Michi.

"Ha, can't fight the truth. You were late for once. Let's just get this mission over with already," Michi spoke, unamused.

"Why you approach each mission like it's a chore?" Saryie questioned, annoyed as they made their leave following after Azumi.

"Because that's all it really is. It's a job."

"You're just so lazy."

"And your sooo late."

"Oh, I was not!"

"Ha, tell that to the clock," Michi amused, with a snicker.

"Stop bantering. Both of you need to focus," Azumi commanded, her tone steady.

Both Michi and Saryie quit their rambling as they focused on the task at hand. Saryie mood shifted back to what it was before. She was excited as she quickened her pace. She loved being a shinobi as she took the lead of her team.

They ran as fast as ninjas can to the location they had been informed as the rendezvous point. As they got closer, Azumi cautioned Saryie from running head first into battle and the team slowed their approach, getting a feel for the situation.

Azumi took in the surroundings, they were shrouded in dense trees, the enemy could not perceive them in. Saryie was itching to move as the targets were in sight. Three grown men stood up ahead. They didn't look like much of a threat, but Saryie was careful not to underestimate them.

One man with a rectangle-shape face stood in an orange shirt with a sword swaying at his hips. Another stood off to the side in green pants and a balding head; a whip, looked to be strapped to his back. Then lastly, the other man held the little boy in his firm grip. He was much meatier looking than his other pals and had some wicked growing sideburns.

Azumi quickly came up with a plan and her teammates moved into position as she began to cast her genjutsu on the following targets.

Soon the clearing was opened to the illusion of the boy's father, the lord, appearing to the three men. The father approached the three men, holding a suitcase within his grasp, a desperate look upon his face.

Saryie and Michi watched from the trees, waiting for their moment to strike.

The man with the sideburns held the little boy by the wrist, twisting it back behind the boy. It kept the little boy in place as he called out to his father. His father promised him it'll be alright. The one in orange made a speech about how well they took care of his son as he stepped forward, his hand on his sword.

The lord requested his son, but the man in orange snickered as he drew his sword. The man in green requested for the money first. The lord threw the suitcase to the man in green, then begged once more for his son.

The man in green snatched at the suitcase on the ground, checking the suitcase's contents. The man in orange laughed mildly as he began to ramp up his sword, when a scream came from the man in green. The suitcase attacked at his arm, having grew razor teeth, spraying blood everywhere.

"It's an illusion!" the man in orange shouted, outraged.

Before he could react, the lord of the land from the genjutsu vanished and in its place came an unexpected punch. As Saryie crashed through the illusion, punching the man square in the jaw, sending him backwards.

Senbon were thrown simultaneously at the man with sideburns that was holding the little boy captive. The needle like objects landed in the man's right shoulder. The man released the small boy at the surprise of the attack, reeling from the pain in the senbon that threw him back. The scared little boy took his chance fleeing from his captor

"Get the boy!" The man in orange commanded as he picked himself up from the ground, ready to face Saryie again.

"Right," the man with sideburns remarked, angered, as he went to capture the boy.

The man was about to grab hold of the little boy's clothing when Michi appeared in front of the boy. Michi twisted grown man's out stretched hand. The man howled at the attack, curses coming from his mouth as Michi threw a punch right at the man's gut.

The man bent forward in a huff, but moved swiftly to counter attack with a punch when Michi had vanished with the boy into thin air.

More senbon flew at the large man with sideburns that was looking for Michi. They landed in his back as he howled in pain.

The man in orange looked over from his fight with Saryie and growled. "WHERE'S THE BOY?"

"I don't know. The blue head freak vanished…" the overgrown man said, but stopped short as he felt his body numbing. He fell to the ground in a big heap.

"You should really focus on me," Saryie commented as she once again landed a swift blow to the man's side with her kick.

Blood protruded from his mouth as he cursed. He swung his sword wildly in rage as Saryie swiftly dodged it and managed to kick it out of his hand. Saryie skillfully landed blows on to her opponent until she got him to face her with his back turned to Azumi.

Azumi sent senbon flying from the trees to the man's back. The numbing sensation took over the man in orange's body soon enough and he fell to the floor in defeat.

Saryie smiled in victory as Azumi came out of the trees. Michi reappeared in plain sight with the boy from his camouflage jutsu.

"Yea! We totally kick their asses!" Saryie cheered.

"Its unbecoming to gloat. You'll begin to underestimate your opponents that way," Azumi warned, deadpan.

"Oh is it too much to ask for you to lighten up a bit," Saryie complained.

"Yes," Azumi stated as she headed over to the man in green still stuck in the genjutsu. She took out a senbon from her pack under poncho and threw it into the man's shoulder.

The man screamed as the genjutsu was released and quickly scrambled on the ground to get his bearings but by the time he registered what happened, his body began to numb.

"Well I say this is a wrap. I'm ready to go home and relax," Michi spoke, stretching his arms over his head.

"You barely did anything!" Saryie commented as Azumi answered at the same time.

"Yes, the mission is complete, the boy is secure. His father will be happy about our success."

"Hey I did my part," Michi defended, casually, against Saryie's comment.

"Let's get him back to Hokage's office. These men will be left numb here for another two hours. Plenty of time for Anbu to come pick them up," Azumi addressed, ignoring her teammates bickering.

"Am I really going home?" the little boy asked, quietly, still shaken from the ordeal.

"Awe, of course you are. That what we came here to do," Saryie mentioned sweetly to the kid that was at Michi's side.

Michi crouched down to eye level with the kid as well. "We'll get you back to your father. We're Leaf shinobi. You'll be alright now. Would you like to climb on my back as we get you home?"

The kid nodded his head and climbed onto Michi's back. The team was ready to depart back to Konoha after another mission complete.

They arrived at the Hokage's office in good time, and the son was reacquainted with the lord of the land. The lord of the land thanked the ninja's repeatedly and thanked the Hokage, before he left with his own personal body guards back to his land outside of Konoha's walls.

After the lord of the land left, Azumi began the mission report. The Hokage was pleased with the mission's success and sent a dispatch of Anbu to pick up the criminals that had ransom the lord's son to begin with. The Hokage then shortly dismissed Azumi, Saryie and Michi from her office. The team made their way out of the Hokage's office as the Hokage's apprentice was walking in.

Saryie almost ran into the pink haired girl. She was slightly taller than Saryie and wore a pink outfit and had emerald green eyes. Saryie vaguely recalled the girl from the academy who use to hang around with Ino. The pink haired girl had mutter an apology as she stepped to the side, leaving room for Saryie and her team to pass.

"My how they grown," Shizune commented, the Hokage's assistant.

The pink haired girl's attention quickly snapped back to the Hokage's office.

"Yes, they have. They're efficient. They've successfully completed each mission I have given them without their sensei on their team," the Hokage commented, in thought.

"May I ask what team is that, Tsunade-sama?" The pink haired girl asked from the door, her curiosity peaked at the somewhat familiar faces of the ninja that passed her.

"Team H," Tsunade replied, her focus now drawn to the pink haired girl, with documents in her hand.

"I'm glad you're here Sakura, now what do you got for me?" Tsunade asked.

Sakura soon stepped forward back on task, as she set the files on top of Tsunade's desk, but curiosity lingered in her mind of who Team H was.

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 **Is your curiosity peaked yet? I would hope so. Stay tune for more.**

 **Please review. Any comments are welcome. But I can already say, that I know my spelling and grammar is bad sometimes.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. But I do own Azumi, Saryie, and Michi.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Here is chapter 2. The story is slowly building, but I hope it interests you.**

 **If anyone is curious about updates or progress on the story, you can check my profile and I usually inform those on what I'm working on.**

 **Also feel free to check out my deviantart account. My username is simplyplain42. That is where I will be posting some drawings that go with the story as well an accurate portrayal of how each of my characters look. Thank you.**

 **Please enjoy.**

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 **Stirring Emotions**

Chapter2

Saryie was moseying along through the village. She was off for the day. No missions and no assignments. She could take this as a day to take it easy, but life wasn't about taking it easy. When she normally had no missions, she would train.

She would train till sweat dripped down her back and face. She didn't like to call it quits. She wanted to be stronger. She wanted to make sure her body stayed in shape. She didn't always work on getting her muscles stronger; she also worked on endurance, stamina, speed, and balance. She worked hard to develop her sparing skills. She wanted to stay light and fast on her feet and she needed just enough muscle to maintain that speed.

It was a sunny day, a perfect day to train as the weather was not too hot. Saryie was thankful for that as she was leisurely strolling through the village. She had some time before meeting her training partner. She never liked to keep people waiting and liked to be on time to most events. She tended to schedule the right amount of time for everything.

Saryie was passing by the park when a familiar silhouette caught her eye. She spied Sai sitting cross legged on the grassy ground next to a rather large tree. His back was turned towards her as she saw the slightest movement of his arm, making her curiosity.

She witnessed he had the same style of civilian clothes he had on the other day as she approached silently. She swiftly made her way up the tree, using her charka at her feet; she stood upside down on a tree branch over looking Sai's position.

From there, she saw what Sai was doing. He was drawing on a sketch pad in dark ink. Only the brief traces of an outline forming like he was just getting started.

"You're an artist?"

Sai casually glanced up, no hint of surprise upon his face; however, he was not expecting Saryie to be hanging from there.

"Oh, it's you," Sai mentioned, his face blank.

"Were you expecting another?" Saryie questioned, curious, tilting her head.

"No. I just figured it might be Naruto trying to spy on me," Sai stated, turning his attention back to his drawing.

"You know Naruto?" Saryie asked.

"Yes. We're on Team Kakashi together," Sai mentioned evenly, as his hand began to move freely across the page, continuing his drawing.

Saryie paused for a minute, watching Sai twist and turn his brush expertly.

"What are you drawing?"

"A duck," Sai answered monotone.

"It looks like a bunny from here," Saryie stated, tilting her head, trying to see the duck he was drawing.

Sai stopped stroking his brush across the paper for a moment. He pondered on the thought as he turn paper to the side to see the angle Saryie was mentioning. He was momentary amused as he saw the bunny out of the duck drawing he was making.

"I guess so," Sai admitted, as turn his sketchpad back right side up and continued drawing the duck.

Saryie did a flip as she disconnected her charka from the tree and landed beside him. She carelessly dropped down by him, and continued watching as he worked. Saryie studied his face inconspicuously as she sat there.

She knew some people were bothered by her brash behavior, but he seemed unaffected. He carried on despite her presence and proximity. He didn't care one bit if she was here or not. His face was blank but she knew he wasn't completely absorbed into his drawing. He was well aware of his surroundings, but his body was relaxed. Saryie figured drawing was like mediation for him as they sat there in silence.

"You draw well," Saryie complimented after a moment, watching his reactions carefully.

"Thank you," Sai said, stopping momentarily, his shoulders tensing as his eyes shifting over to glance at her.

Saryie caught the slight movement of his eyes. He was analyzing her as she was trying to study him. He was keen and guarded. Saryie hid nothing from his eyes. Her face was relaxed but inquisitive, her eyes soft.

"What do you do with them?" She calmly asked, her voice light.

"What do I do with them…." Sai stated, his attention drawing to Saryie, looking at her confused.

"Do you sell them?" Saryie asked, clarifying her meaning.

"No."

"Where do they go then?"

"They stay with me," Sai answered, a little perplexed.

"Why don't you sell them?"

"I don't see no reason to."

"No one has tried to commission one from you?" Saryie asked, purely interested.

"No." Sai answered shortly. His eyes analyzing over her face.

"So you keep them all?"

"Yes."

"Can I see them sometime?"

Sai was taken back for a moment. He stared at her blankly for quite some time. She was so forward. No one has really ask to see all of his work before. Sakura had asked once to see his picture book, but not his entire collection of drawings.

As Saryie had talked to him, Sai could feel her genuine curiosity radiating from her. She was chatty. Very chatty; Sai had noticed her lack of care for personal boundaries as she sat by his very knee caps. She was certainly different; compared to many others he had interacted with.

Sai could not think of an appropriate response to her request. He had some reluctantly to agree, but it was mostly because of his cautious nature. He couldn't shake the years of training he had gone through that didn't suggest to him she was playing at some angle.

After a moment, Saryie could take a hint. She got up unexpectedly, with a smile on her face.

"That's ok. Maybe someday you might show me. See you later, chicken legs," Saryie said, hopeful and playful as she headed away.

Sai watched her leave, not saying farewell and continued his drawing once she was out of his sight.

Saryie headed to the training grounds. She wasn't too late, but she took off soon, thinking it's better to be early than late.

When she approached the grassy training grounds, she heard familiar voices floating over to her ears.

"Rotation."

"Three hundred and ninety seven."

"Again Tenten."

"Right."

Saryie saw how Neji and Tenten were training together as Neji practice his rotation. He had refracted all of Tenten's kunai that she had thrown and off to the distance was Rock Lee. He was on his hands doing pushups and counting. Neji stopped after his second spin, his byakugan noticing Saryie's approach.

"Lee you're partner has arrived," Neji coolly informed.

Tenten and Lee both stopped what they were doing as Saryie landed in the training grounds.

"SARYIE!" Lee shouted overjoyed as he pushed off his hands, landing upright.

"Hey Lee," Saryie said, cheerfully, smiling back at her friend.

"You're late," Neji spoke, his face firm.

"Sheesh, no I'm not, Neji! I'm on time. What's with everyone saying I'm late when I'm not," Saryie complained, scowling at Neji's informative tone.

"No. She is right on time! Are you ready to have another sparring match and test the strength of our youth?!" Lee exclaimed, wholeheartedly with his fist up in passion.

"YES! Bring it on," Saryie commented, getting into position, smirking at her friend.

"Try not to go at it too long" Tenten pleaded, with a small smile as she scratched her head.

"We shall go until one of us conquers!" Lee proclaimed, getting into position as well.

"Oh boy," Tenten commented, with a sigh.

"And go!" Saryie announced as she burst into action.

Lee met Saryie head on as they sparred using taijutsu, only. Neji and Tenten watched for a bit as the two continually attacked, blocked, and counterattacked. They were a naturally fitted sparring partners. Tenten was always amazed at Saryie's endurance to spend hours sparring continuously with Lee. She never met someone who would go so far as Lee would or Gai could.

Saryie wasn't faster than Lee though. Saryie could match Lee's speed for the most part, but once he took his weights off, Saryie would look like a turtle compared to Lee. Neji's eyes followed his team member's and Saryie's movements. They were definitely fast pace and seem to be a blur of movement with grunts and groans along the way.

Neji and Tenten got back to training themselves after a few moments, but they took more breaks through out there training compared to that of Lee and Saryie.

On one of Tenten's breaks, she stopped to whine to Lee and Saryie that they needed to stay hydrated too in this heat. Lee and Saryie soon stopped after Lee claimed Tenten was right. When Saryie agreed, Lee and her bounced away from each other. Both were slightly out of breath as they went to where Tenten and Neji were sitting to get there water bottles.

"You two are looking good, you're almost the perfect match for each other now," Tenten commented, smiling towards the two.

"Yes! We have grown much; Saryie is getting as fast as me now," Lee mentioned, patting Saryie on the back with a big smile.

"I'll catch up with you someday, Lee," Saryie commented, smirking as she took a swig of water.

Neji grunted, making Saryie glare at him.

"What?" Saryie sneered at Neji.

"You have unrealistic goals," Neji claimed.

"Eh, and what goals do you have that are so much more realistic than mine?" Saryie commented, snooty.

"To get to Anbu. It's a much more manageable dream than just trying to be as strong as everyone else," Neji stated, calm, ignoring Saryie's hostility.

"I am just as strong as everyone else!" Saryie claimed, slightly angry.

"Neji," Tenten scolded. "He just means Saryie… instead of focusing on trying to beat everyone, maybe focus of perfecting your own type of technique," Tenten clarified, gently smiling.

Saryie pursed her lips in thought. She understood what Tenten was saying. Sometimes she focused too much on beating the opponent, making her impulsive. It left gaps in her fighting style, especially when she was over confident. She had been perfecting her taijutsu ever since she was a kid. It was the one thing she was always good at, until she got control over her chakra nature. She relied on her speed with most opponents to cover for the faults in her fighting style. She was trying to get stronger to cover for those faults of hers.

"Saryie is a wonderful fighter. She could best anyone," Lee claimed, defending Saryie.

"Even you?" Neji mentioned, annoyed at Lee's persistent behavior.

Lee stuttered at that, choking slightly. Tenten laughed as Lee rambled excuses. Saryie smirked, not offended. She knew Lee took pride in his skills and would like to think he could beat any opponent with taijutsu alone. She wouldn't want to take that idea away from her friend. He was a splendid ninja even without fancy jutsu.

"It's alright, Lee. We might never know who would win between us," Saryie mentioned, smiling padding him on the back. Lee looked back at her, his eyes watering with joy.

"Yes, it is indeed a question we may never need to know the answer to," Lee spoke softer now.

"Ready to go again?" Saryie mentioned, pumped up.

"INDEED!" Lee proclaimed jumping to his feet as Saryie got up too.

"They're going to go at it till sun down, huh?" Tenten said, whining to Neji.

"I'm afraid so," Neji replied nonchalantly, taking a sip of his water.

Saryie and Lee did spar until sun down that day. Saryie never giving up; she pushed her endurance levels to attack and counter attack. Lee's stamina held up great against Saryie, working up a sweat. They both came to a stop when their bellies growled at the same time. They stopped mid attack and laughed. They then agreed to go get something to eat together, as they called it quits for the day.

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 **Well there it is. Let me know what you think so far. It be greatly appreciated.**

 **Please Review**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. I do own Saryie, Azumi, and Michi though.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Here is the next segment, hope you enjoy.**

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 **Stirring Emotions**

Chapter 3

Saryie had awoke with a bounce in her step. She felt good about today. She had no real idea why. She must of woke up on the right side of the bed. She was out the door quickly, fleeing from her small apartment complex.

It was quaint for her. It was what she could afford on a chunin's salary. It had a bathroom, a small kitchen, and just enough space to be able to move around freely. She had no balcony though, which was a bummer for Saryie. She would have loved to have a balcony.

She was on her way to the training grounds again; she made sure she was not late this time. She liked to be on time. She didn't like showing up early, but she also hated to be late.

Her team had a meeting today with their sensei. He had just gotten home from a mission himself and he had arranged a team meeting. They usually meet over at the training grounds, by the trees and log posts.

Saryie remembers fondly how back in her team's genin days, they had a hard time getting along. She was the overly enthusiastic one of the bunch. Her sensei had called her name and asked for her aspirations. She had exclaimed quite vaguely and loudly that she planned to the strongest ninja ever and no longer play the victim. Saryie knew that back then, her sensei probably had no idea how to react to that.

Their sensei was a very straightforward, polite man. He was mostly solemn half the time, following the rules. He was awkward in dealing with children. That's why Saryie thought he didn't know what to make of them as they were just starting out.

When Azumi was called on next, asking for her aspirations, she had a pessimistic answer. She had answered that goals were pointless, and that she would take whatever life threw at her. Azumi had no ambitions. Life comes and goes, she said. Saryie remembers how Azumi's attitude back then bummed her out.

Azumi was one of those types that played by the book as well. She was quiet and standoffish. She was skillful and observant. She was rational while Saryie was brash. They were opposites, to which they had a shaky friendship throughout their genin days.

Michi, on the other hand, was the easy-going, relaxed one of the group. When he was asked about his aspirations, he followed saying that he too had no goals. His answer, although, wasn't because he thought it was pointless, but because he never really thought about what's to come. He had answered that he'll go wherever life takes him. Saryie recalls how she had whined back then at how her two teammates were let downs.

Saryie had wanted teammates that were optimistic and positive. Instead she had gotten a pessimist and a slacker. She butted heads a lot with Michi too, because he was just too lazy to do anything. Michi almost complained as much as she did… but about different things… like the weather is too hot, too cold, too windy. Their sensei would get annoyed quickly at Michi's constant lack of motivation to train hard, along with the complaining. Their sensei had to learn to bribe him.

Saryie smiled, fondly. They have grown so much… but not much has changed she thought as she landed in the training grounds. Saryie could sense her sensei wasn't too far behind her as she spied her teammates already there.

Azumi was reading. She was leaned up against the tree with a book in her hands. She did not lift her head in acknowledgement upon Saryie's arrival. She kept her eyes on the page as she kept reading.

Michi, on the other hand, was in a tree next to the tree Azumi was leaning against. He was on his back relaxing against the tree branch. It would look as if he were sleeping, but Saryie new better. Michi was awake and he enjoyed doing nothing in his free time.

Saryie heard their sensei's arrival. He landed in front of the three, his face rather blank. He was of average height and wore standard Konoha shinobi gear. He had long brown hair that ran down his back with a bandana that held his forehead protector covered the top half of his head. A few bangs of his hair framed his face. He had white featureless eyes that mark the trait of the Hyuga clan and a rather plump nose.

"I'm glad you're all here," their sensei announced.

"Yea, I'm surprised too that Saryie didn't show up late again," Michi mentioned from the tree. His eyes opened, looking down at Saryie with a teasing smirk upon his lips.

"Ugh… not this again. IT WAS ONE TIME!" Saryie exclaimed, annoyed.

Their sensei looked perturbed with the yelling, he sighed heavily. Azumi looked annoyed too having stopped reading to pay attention.

"One time tooo many," Michi teased as he jumped down from the tree. He crouched on the ground staring up at Saryie who rolled her eyes at him.

"Alright settle down," their sensei commanded. Even if he was use to Saryie and Michi's banter, it didn't mean he had much tolerance for it. He liked to stay on task, to stay professional. "First off, I would like to congratulate you on another successful mission you accomplished on your own. The three of you are becoming fine shinobi."

"What is this about, Iroha-sensei?" Azumi asked, monotone, her eyes watchful.

"Second off, the Hokage has a request for all three of you."

Everyone's attention was drawn to Iroha's next words, keenly interested.

"You three are to start developing a jutsu. A jutsu that will combine all your talents into a defensive barrier around the village as a backup strategy in case the first defense fails," Iroha expressed, his eyes analyzing over his student's reactions.

"Is the village in danger?" Azumi asked, suspicious of the request.

"No. You three are to start training and developing a protective jutsu, immediately. The Hokage wishes to see results if it can be done," Iroha replied, his tone serious.

"What?! What are we even supposed to do?" Saryie asked, perplexed, looking quizzically at Iroha.

"Sounds like a lot of work…" Michi mentioned, slightly frowning.

"What of our skills has the Hokage musing that we can perform this defensive jutsu?" Azumi questioned, rationally, her voice even.

Iroha stared evenly at the three of them as he addressed Azumi's question. "She had hopes that with Michi's reptilian armor expanded that it can cover all of the village and that with Azumi's genjutsu that pursuers would get lost in finding the village, appearing as if the village had disappeared. Lastly, she hoped Saryie would not only provide support to her teammates in the midst of the genjutsu and aid of chakra flow, but as a last line of defense if perpetrators broke through the genjutsu, with a water tsunami," Iroha explained, his face lacking any expression.

His students took in the information, slowly coming to terms with how they might train and how they would need to work together. Saryie's confusion soon turned into a wave of excitement, a smile spreading across her lips.

"YES! New training. This is going to be awesome," Saryie commented.

"Training sounds like a hassel," Michi spoke, pulling at the grass, griming.

"This is essentially your new mission, from the Hokage. She expects results. You can't slack off Michi. When you're not out of missions, she expects you to be working towards the jutsu. She's giving you three months' time to come up with results. I suggest you get started," Iroha stated as he disappeared in a puff of smoke, no longer wanting to hear Michi's complaining.

The three of them did get started immediately, but didn't train with each other. They all went off to separate training spots to work individually in expanding and maintaining their jutsu.

Azumi had went off to the cliff, to mediate and focus her charka. She was trying to expand her genjutsu range. She concentrated on sensing as many chakra networks as possible that were within range of her genjutsu.

Michi reluctantly went to train, not far away from Saryie. Mostly because without Saryie's constant supervision he would give up after an hour or two and goof off. Michi did hand signs as he performed his reptilian armor jutsu. His skin quickly became harden and scaly like a reptile.

There was slight skin color disfiguration as his skin held a tint of green. He performed more hand signs to expand his armor from his body to the surrounding area. His armor rippled off his form in waves, growing, but stopped six feet from him. It was hard enough for him to maintain his armor at this distance from his body as he tried to maintain a constant flow of chakra from his body.

Saryie kept Michi within her sights as she saw him train. He lacked motivation to train hard and to perfect anything.

Saryie concentrated on what her task was. She was by one of the rivers in the village. She performed some hand signs as she practiced summoning the water to her command. The more water she summoned the more chakra she had to use. It was a depleting process, but she wasn't going to give up. She thrived on training her body and accomplishing something.

The team spent the day training until they depleted most of their chakra. The sun was starting to go down when the team called it quits, Michi especially.

Azumi left straight away, heading home with not much of a farewell to her fellow teammates. Michi and Saryie on the other hand, decide to go get something to eat as they head back into the village.

They were surprised at seeing Team 10 there at the restaurant they decided on. Michi easily greeted a member of the team, Shikamaru, and sat beside his friend.

"Hey Shikamaru, mind if we join," Michi casually asked, already sitting beside him.

Saryie accompanied Michi's other side, greeting Shikamaru and rest of Team 10, Ino and Choji, as well.

Ino greeted Saryie curtly, having remembered her from the academy days. They weren't friends back then, but weren't enemies either. They had stayed out of each other's hair when they quickly realized they did not get along well on the playground. Ino also greeted Michi, but gave him a quizzical look, not very familiar with him.

Choji greeted Saryie and Michi friendly. He wasn't very sure who they were, but can recall them from academy.

Shikamaru had to make introductions, having known Michi from the academy as well as his clan and Saryie from a mission he had been assigned.

"So how do you guys know each other?" Choji had asked, interested, smiling.

"Michi is from the Haruki clan. A similar clan to the Aburame clan that hosts bugs. The Haruki clan specializes in reptiles and reptilian jutsu; there especially known for their camouflage jutsu and reptilian armor. The Nara clan has consultations with them due to a lot of lizards live in the Nara clan's forest. So I knew Michi for quite some time due to our clan's relations to each other.

"And Saryie, we met on a mission I led in the Hidden Grass Village. It's a long story," Shikamaru muttered, relaxing his head in his hand.

"But a good story, I kicked butt!" Saryie mentioned, cheerfully.

"What are your talents?" Ino asked, unimpressed, eyeing Saryie.

"She's another taijutsu expert," Shikamaru answered, dryly before Saryie replied.

Saryie had caught onto Ino's tone and expression. It was a look of undervalue. Ino was underestimating her. Saryie's attention was drawn away when Ino loudly called for Sakura and Sai.

Saryie immediately looked at the two ninja who had enter into the restaurant and began to approach. Saryie eyed the familiar pale face, catching his eye. She broke eye contact with his blank face, looking at the Hokage's pink haired apprentice, Sakura. She smiled as she approached the nearly crowded table, but Ino insist they sit with them.

Ino loudly greeted Sai, who smiled falsely at her in greeting as he called her beautiful. Saryie noticed how Sakura tensed up at that and balled her fist. Saryie found the act strange. It didn't fit right with the context, mostly because of Sai's fake smile.

Sakura and Sai sat on the same side as Ino and Choji. Sai and Saryie's eyes locked again. Sai's eyes were devoid of emotion as Saryie eyes analyzed his silently. Sakura introduced herself once she sat down, looking expectantly at Saryie and Michi.

"I'm Michi of the Haruki clan," Michi announced smiling, charmingly at her.

"Saryie," Saryie spoke quite frank, looking at Sakura with a small smile.

They ordered food and ate with chatter amongst the table, discussing missions, food, and people. Sai sat in silence during most of the discussion, Saryie noticed his quiet behavior, interested in the way he seemed out of place and awkward in a social environment. Michi having taken notice of Saryie's interest, joked slightly, making Saryie keep her eyes off Sai for the rest of the night.

* * *

 **Things are slowly moving. I gave you a little more of a taste on who Team H is, but there is lots more to discover about these characters. I hope you're as interested as I am. Please Review.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. But I own Saryie, Michi, and Azumi**


	4. Chapter 4

**Well this chapter might be a bit more interesting… I personally liked writing this chapter. Hope you like reading it!**

* * *

 **Stirring Emotions**

Chapter 4

"Come on Michi! You're being lazy."

Sai stopped short, hearing the familiar voice from the other night. He saw Saryie pulling at the man he met the other night as well, Michi, if Sai recalled correctly. Michi was sitting down at the Ichiraku Ramen shop, ordering while Saryie tried to pull the him away from the seat.

"I'm not being lazy. I deserve a break for once. We had border patrol all morning. I don't feel like sparring," Michi grumbled as he held firm to his spot.

"That's the same thing as being lazy, come on just one round," Saryie begged, her arms were around her companion's arm.

"Find Lee or someone else to train with you," Michi spoke, stubbornly sipping at the broth of his dish.

"Lee is out on a mission, come on…" Saryie pestered, not giving up.

"I can spar with you," Sai interrupted as he approached the two.

He was working on making new friends and getting a feel for these bonds that Naruto always talked so highly about. His recent trip to the library made him discover the best way to build bonds was to be open and inviting to social situations. It said to take advantage of opportunities that presented themselves when people needed help or advice. He knew Saryie didn't need help or advice… but she was looking for a sparring partner.

From the quick reactions from Michi and Saryie, Sai wondered if he was too forward in his approach. He witnessed Saryie take a grand, speculating look at him. He tried to smile and appear friendly. Sometimes he felt hopeless in these social situation. Michi looked confused but relief filled his face quickly, noticing Saryie hold on him waver.

"There you go, go train with Say," Michi announced.

"Sai," Sai corrected, blankly, not offended.

"Yea, Sai, whatever," Michi claimed, eating his ramen again.

Saryie's critical eyes softened as a smirk graced her features.

"Alright, I hope you're up for a challenge," Saryie stated her confidence pouring out, her eyes eager.

Sai smiled falsely at her in response. "You don't look very challenging."

Michi almost choked at that, laughing slightly. Saryie kept a straight face, her eyes narrowed slightly, not unnerved by his bluntness.

"This will be good," Michi spoke as he downed his meal. Michi got up from his spot, paying Ichiraku on the counter. "I'm tagging along to watch."

"Make sure you stay out of the way," Saryie commented to Michi, still eyeing Sai.

"I never am," Michi mentioned, as he eyed the two, slightly smirking.

They headed over to the training grounds. They pick one that was vacant and Michi ascended a tree off to the side in order to spectate. Sai and Saryie stood on opposite ends from each other of decent length.

Saryie was slightly crouched, shifting into her fighting stance. Sai stood facing her, waiting for her move patiently. Saryie smirked, noticing he was waiting on her to make the first move. His eyes were running over her body, analyzing, trying to predict her attack noticing her hand shift at the kunai pouch at her hip.

"If you think it's wise for me to make the first move, you're mistaken," Saryie claimed as she suddenly threw a kunai and disappeared.

Sai quickly dodged the kunai thrown and turned in time to catch Saryie's fist from the other side.

"For a taijutsu user, you're pretty sloppy at hiding your attack patterns," Sai commented, his face grave.

Saryie grunted and went to kick, twisting her body. Sai let go of her fist to fly back away from her kick, but was followed by Saryie's quick speed into a series of punches and kicks. Sai was able to block and keep up with her speed, dodging her blows.

"Your reflexes are quick," Saryie commented as she landed away from him, throwing shuriken from her pack at her hip.

Sai quickly blocked the sharp stars with his sword from his back. He quickly sheathed it once more onto his back and took out his scroll, quickly dapping into the paint.

"Super beast scroll."

Saryie witnessed as Sai's drawings came to life right before her very eyes. The lions leaped after her as Saryie had to quickly think on her feet.

Saryie leaped into the air above the lions' attack and performed some hand signs.

"Waterstyle. Water blast jutsu."

Water protruded from Saryie's mouth as she was able to wash the drawings away. Sai's eyes watched carefully as he drew more raging lions as a cover for another drawing he released.

Saryie landed, blasting the other lions away with her water jutsu. She ran around some of them in order to get closer to her target. She kicked some lions out of the way and threw kunai at the rest. Sai stood unmoving, prepared for Saryie's attack as she approached.

Saryie moved to punch Sai, now that he was finally within reach, but her movements were cut short. Saryie looked down to see drawings of snakes were holding her legs and her arms back from hitting Sai.

Sai casually eyed her predicament. "Check mate."

"Not quite," Saryie smirked, her face smug.

Sai watch as she replaced her body with a water clone out of thin air and her real body separated from the trapped clone. She maneuvered quickly around her clone with kunai in hand to attack Sai.

Sai had just enough time to react; pulling out his sword to block Saryie's attack, meanwhile the water clone snapped and the water washed away the snakes.

They stayed kunai to sword for a moment, each accessing each other. Saryie smirked, she knew with anyone else, she would have had them with that last move. Usually people were too slow to keep up with her speed, especially with close combat, with Lee, Iroha, Gai, and Neji being the exception.

"You ain't half bad," Saryie stated, chipper.

There was a slow clap as Michi descended the tree as Sai and Saryie separated, heeding their weapons. "Fascinating, I finally got to see Saryie get her butt beat," Michi teased with a laugh.

"Shut it Michi. He's definitely better than you," Saryie commented, sticking her tongue out at Michi.

Michi laughed, his hands in his blue hair. "And I have no problem with that, sore loser."

Saryie ignored him, focusing on Sai. Her lips were pursed as she eyed him. "What kind of training have you had? I know those reflexes aren't standard from the academy," Saryie stated, interested.

"I was trained under a special anbu regiment when I was a kid," Sai answered vaguely.

"Anbu?" Saryie repeated, stunted.

Sai nodded.

"Ha. No wonder you never stood a chance, Saryie," Michi claimed, amused.

"You execute taijutsu quite well, almost as good as Lee's taijutsu. Where did you learn?" Sai asked, his voice monotone but he was calculating her strengths.

Saryie laughed, lightly. "I actually learned most of my taijutsu from Lee and Gai-sensei," she mentioned happily, smiling.

"You're quick, but obvious in your assault. You think speed will cover your obvious frontal attacks, like throwing that kunai to distract me when you plan to attack from the rear. It was easy to counter," Sai spoke.

"Maybe… but for most people they usually don't know what hits them until it does," Saryie spoke, confident, her hand on her hip.

"If that's what best suits you," Sai commented, feeling odd at Saryie's chipper and confident nature. "It was a pleasure to train with you," Sai said awkwardly, taking his cue to leave the pair.

"Bye Sai," Saryie said as she watched him leave the training grounds.

"He sure is an odd fellow," Michi mentioned, now that Sai was out of hearing range.

"I don't think he knows how to be normal," Saryie commented, contemplative.

"Ah well who cares, saved me from having to train with you and it wasted my afternoon. I have to go pick up my lil' sister from the academy. You wanna come?" Michi spoke, nonchalantly.

"Sure," Saryie agreed and smiled at Michi, "Which sister?"

"Miyu. Mom is afraid of her causing trouble after school," Michi mentioned, with a snicker.

"How about Airi? She's like 8 now isn't she?" Saryie questioned

"Yea, she's enrolled in the academy as well, so I might as well pick her up too," Michi spoke casually.

Saryie and Michi headed over to the academy. It brought back so many memories for the two of them. They weren't much friends in the academy, not until they were assigned on the same team. Michi was lucky to graduate. He was no genius like Shikamaru but was as lazy as he was in the hard work department.

When they arrived at the academy, the students were just being released. It was easy for Saryie to spot Michi's sisters in the crowd due to their unlikely blue hair.

"Miyu, over here," Michi called as he spotted his oldest sister talking to the other kids.

Saryie witness Miyu take one glance at Michi, agitation gracing her features. She was certainly not happy as she said farewell to her friends and headed over to Saryie and Michi.

Miyu was of average height and size for her age of 12. She had short blue hair that whipped up at the sides in curls. Her eyes were dark as well and had distinct piercings in her ears, like her brother. She wore knee length shorts with a diamond shape pattern running vertically up the sides. Underneath her shorts was a netted stockings and on her feet slip on shoes. On her upper body she wore a loose tank top with a mesh shirt underneath as well. She was certainly not happy as she approached the two.

"What do you want brother?" Miyu spoke with an attitude.

"I'm here to walk you home," Michi stated, casually.

"I'm not a baby! I can do it myself," Miyu defended, annoyed.

"Sorry, mom's orders. I guess she's had enough of you beating on the other kids," Michi claimed, evenly with a smirk.

"It's not like I start it," Miyu exclaimed with a roll of her eyes.

"Not according to Iruka."

"Iruka can kiss my…"

"Miyu!" Michi's other sister Airi scolded as she reached the group. "Iruka is a wonderful instructor. He's kind and friendly. Don't talk so mean about him."

Miyu grumbled at her younger sister Airi as Saryie greeted her.

"Saryie!" Airi exclaimed as she hugged Saryie.

"Hey Airi, how's school going?" Saryie asked, cheerfully.

"Just wonderful, we practice with kunai today," Airi spoke, joyfully.

"Pheesh, kid stuff," Miyu remarked.

"Hey, you haven't even passed the final exam yet, don't be acting all high and mighty," Michi commented.

"I would of passed if Iruka didn't rush me! He's a lousy…."

"Miyu!" Her little sister scolded again with a glare, but her mood shifted quickly looking back to Saryie. "I'mma be just as strong and good as you, Saryie when I become a ninja."

Saryie smirked, rustling Airi's blue hair. "I don't doubt it. I hope you become strong too," Saryie spoke encouragingly.

Airi smiled hugely, her whole face lightening up. Airi was smaller than most of the kids her age. She had boots with a diamond shape crest engraved in them. She also wore shorts like her sister but it had one diamond place vertically on the left side vertically. She wore a long sleeved tan shirt that was rolled up to her elbows. Her hair was styled differently than her brothers and her sister's hair. Her blue bangs curled to the left of her face and the rest of her hair fell in waves to her shoulders. She was much more chipper and happy-go-lucky than her sister.

"Alright let's get you too both home," Michi expressed as he nudged Miyu ahead of him.

Miyu grumbled, her footsteps heavily on the pavement. Airi skipped along holding Saryie's hand as they talked about Airi's day in the academy.

When they arrived at the Haruki compound, they headed to Michi's home. Miyu quickened her pace, and grumbled about not being a kid anymore to her mother as she passed her mom. Michi's mom yelled after Miyu about her attitude. Airi skipped ahead, letting go of Saryie's hand. Michi's mom thanked Michi for picking Miyu and Airi up and greeted Saryie.

Out of nowhere came a squeal of delight as Michi's third sister came running out the house, passing Michi's mom.

"Brotherrr!" came the little four-year-old voice as she hugged Michi's leg.

"Hey Aoi," Michi greeted her as she soon let go of her brother's leg to hug Saryie.

"Is Saryie staying for dinner?" Aoi asked, excited.

"Oh, I don't know. You're welcome to join us if you like Saryie," Michi's mom offered with a smile.

"Oh no, it's quite fine. I rather get going. I still have some errands to run," Saryie weakly declined.

"Oh pleaseee," Aoi begged.

Aoi was Michi's youngest sister. She had lighter blue hair than the rest of them. It curled on top of her head and was held in a small pony tail. Her ears were pierce as was the trait of the Haruki clan and wore a light tint green dress.

"Aoi, stop. Saryie has things to do. Maybe next time," Michi mother said, sharply.

Aoi whined as she let go of Saryie. Saryie smiled gently at Aoi and hugged her as she said her farewells to Michi's family.

Saryie wished Michi luck as she heard his mother asked him to do some chores and his sisters voices in the background. Michi chuckled, waving to Saryie as she left.

Saryie walked home after running her errand and headed back to her one room apartment. She missed being close to a family, but she quickly turned away from those sad thoughts and went to bed.

* * *

 **Well let me know what you thought of Sai and Saryie's sparring match. You got to meet three of Michi's sisters. Imagine how he feels having to put up with a bunch of females all day and even being on a team with girls. Ha.**

 **Please Review.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. I own Saryie, Michi, and Azumi**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hope your ready for a new mission!**

* * *

 **Stirring Emotions**

Chapter 5

"Another B-rank mission?" Saryie whined in the Hokage's office.

Tsunade narrowed her eyes in contempt. "Yes, it's an escort mission. You'll be traveling to Suna after picking up Mister Nago from small village in the Land of Fire," Tsunade spoke, her voice sharp.

"But we always get B-rank missions," Saryie mentioned, stubbornly.

"And that's what you'll keep getting until a member of your team can earn Jonin. Your team has the highest success rating for these kinds of missions; I wouldn't assign any other team for this mission," Tsunade explained, calmly.

"It's still a B-rank mission," Saryie muttered, with a hand on her hip.

"THAT'S IT!" Tsunade snapped, slamming her hand on her desk. "The next mission assign to you will be a D-rank one. Anyone else have any complaints?!" Tsunade questioned Team H as Saryie grumbled.

"Do we have to go to Suna?" Michi droned, freely.

"Get out!" Tsunade commanded, agitated.

Azumi took the assign papers that were handed to her by Shizune as their team exited the room. Saryie seemed unbothered by the Hokage's outrage. She didn't mind having a new mission, she just wished they were a little more challenging and now cause of her big mouth she will be assigned a D-rank mission when she returns to the village. She sighed inwardly, her hands on top of her head.

"Smooth move you got the Hokage pissed off," Saryie commented to Michi as he walked beside her.

"Heh, you're the one who got her riled up. Why you have to ask for harder missions? The ones we got are good enough," Michi spoke, indifferently.

"I can't learn anything new, if I'm never being challenged," Saryie stated.

"Well now you have a D-rank mission to get pumped up for," Michi commented with a snicker.

"Ughh…" Saryie groaned as Michi laughed.

The team departed from Konoha after gathering supplies for the trip. Suna was a three-day journey through the dessert, plus the detour that they have to take to pick up Mister Nago in an eastern village in the Land of Fire. They were told Mister Nago wanted an escort to Suna in order to meet a business partner of his.

Mister Nago wasn't anyone special, but was afraid for his safety. He wanted protection from rogue crooks that wanted to steal his valuables, which is why he went and hired Leaf shinobi. Their mission would be deemed complete once they take Mister Nago to the Suna and then back again to his home village. Michi thought it was really a hassle, but Saryie knew he was just grumbling because they would have to be traveling through the desert.

The team made their journey to the village that Mister Nago resided in. They're trip to the east took little less than a day's journey, arriving at mister Nago's estate at four in the evening.

Mister Nago's estate guards welcomed them in and escorted them to a waiting room. Team H sat on the floor, as they waited for their client's arrival. Michi was happy to take a rest, and sat informally with his legs crossed. Azumi posture was straight as she took in the sights, sounds, and smells of the place. Saryie was losing a bit of patience as they waited, she didn't know how long Mister Nago would keep them waiting.

When Mister Nago arrived, it was surely not what Saryie expected. He was disheveled, his kimono loosely fitted him, hanging off his slim structure. He cheekbones were prominent and his jaw lacking muscle tone as well as he was losing hair from the top of his head. He looked to be in his mid-thirties, but seemed to be a spacious person.

He welcomed them, his voice a crackly pitch. Azumi stated that they were supposed to escort him across Suna desert and back.

"THAT is correct. You are to protect me and my VALUEABLES at all costs, even at the cost of your life. You GOT it? Usually Tsunade sends Team 10 to me, but apparently they we're already assigned out.

"NOW you listen, this is very important to me and my business. I only meet with my business partner, Oton, ONCE a year. We have a designated system of sorts, to protect our meeting place and assets. We'll receive the meet and greet time when we arrive in Suna. Oton is a very busy man. I can not afford to be late. GOT IT?!" Mister Nago wheezed, his eyes wide.

"Understood. We shall get you there safely and on time. We should leave at first light tomorrow. Get some sleep and stock up on supplies for the trip through the desert," Azumi spoke evenly, not at all affected by Nago's behavior.

"Yes, first light we ride," Nago looked sharply over the bunch and pointed heavily at Michi. "YOU shall carry me across this long journey," Nago declared.

"SERIOUSLY?" Michi protested.

"Yes," Nago answered. "It is CUSTOMARY. Choji use to carry me across this journey."

Michi groaned as Saryie giggled.

"Understood. Will that be all?" Azumi pressed, ignoring her teammates behavior.

"One MORE thing. You ALL SEEM like a capable bunch. So I expect under no circumstance that you all will look inside THIS bag!" Nago announced dramatically as he displayed a regular brown satchel.

"What's in the bag?" Saryie asked, unimpressed.

"HA. Little girl that is why you can't look in it. You are to protect this bag like you protect me WITH your life. I expect nothing less from Leaf shinobi," Nago wailed.

"Did Team 10 really have to deal with this guy every year?" Saryie whispered across the floor to Michi, around Azumi.

"Yea, Shikamaru use to dread it," Michi whispered back.

Nago could hear the rambling of the two and it made his eyebrow twitch. "WILL YOU TWO not be protecting me and my assets, is that what I'm hearing?!" Nago screeched coming closer to Saryie, looking her in the eye.

Saryie eyes quickly narrowed. "It is my mission to protect you. I will not fail," Saryie stated, serious.

"Good. Y'all are dismissed for the night. MY estate service men will show you to your guest room," Nago spoke as he took his bag and left the room.

Team H followed one of the servers to their adjoined room that held three sleeping mats and a table of food. Saryie and Michi dived right into the food as Azumi stopped to thank the servers, shutting the door as they left. Azumi soon joined them, but ate slowly as she looked around the room.

"Our charge seems rather odd."

"I thought you liked odd," Michi teased, with a smirk.

"Not that kind of odd!" Saryie defended. "Nago seems pretty manic."

"You shouldn't be the one complaining. I have to carry him for four days till we reach Suna," Michi groaned.

"Both of you quiet. No more talking ill will towards our charge. Finish up and get to bed," Azumi ordered as she made her way to her sleeping mat.

Michi and Saryie finished eating what they can before laying down and getting some sleep as well. When morning came, the three were ready to get going as they waited outside of Nago's estate for him. Nago came with his brown satchel around his shoulders and dress more casually for his journey. He whined about the early morning as he hopped onto Michi's back and commanded him forward.

The four of them left towards Suna desert, with Saryie in the lead and Azumi behind Michi. During most of the journey, Nago complained and rambled on for hours. Michi kept his mouth shut since he was use to the ramblings of women in his household. He figured Mister Nago just talked to hear his own voice. Azumi kept her focus on the mission, drowning out Mister Nago annoying voice. Saryie on the other hand was being driven up the wall with his attitude.

They arrived at the start of the desert by nightfall, taking a moment break, and restocking on water before their journey. They headed out into the cool desert night, wanting to get a head start on the desert journey before the sun came up.

When it was at least midnight with very little light in the sky, they stopped for the night. Nago complained about his tired old feet, even though he did none of the running. Nago soon hit the hay, leaving Michi free to complain before he too rested for the night. Azumi took first watch, encouraging Saryie to take some rest as well.

During the early morning hours Azumi sensed a new chakra presence. Three of them. They were pretty far away but Azumi didn't want to take any chances.

Azumi awoke Michi and Saryie. Both were groggy from sleep.

"We might have a tail," Azumi stated.

"How far?" Saryie asked, quickly shaking off the sleep.

"A mile from us," Azumi stated

"Are you sure it's a tail?" Michi asked, his face grave.

"I'm uncertain, but I think its best we keep an eye out if it is," Azumi stated, looking expectantly at Michi.

Michi nodded in response and sat up in a crouch. He performed and signs as one of his hands hit the sand beneath him.

"Summoning jutsu."

White tiny lizards appeared, with thin bodies, and long claws. They dived into the sand creating ripples as they treaded over to three chakra signatures Azumi felt.

"Alright that should help us keep an eye on them," Michi claimed, sighing. He hated it when missions didn't go smoothly.

"What about Nago?" Saryie asked.

"No need to mention it. We don't know if they're after him or not," Azumi stated as Saryie nodded.

"Let's wake him up and get going before the sun come up," Azumi mentioned as Michi went to wake up Nago.

They made the next two-day journey to Suna in the same fashion, sleeping late at night, resting in middle of the day, and running in the evenings and at dawn. The team took turns on watches to make sure no threat was detected, but the three charka signatures stayed a mile to two away from them.

The team was grateful to finally see the sand walls of the Suna, finally arriving on schedule. Sand ninja awaited them there. One of them checked over Azumi's papers.

He had purple markings all over his face and wore a black cat-ear hat on his head. His whole outfit was black with a brown rope belt tied around his waist and three heavy scrolls strapped securely to his back.

He smirked as he addressed the Team, handing back Azumi's papers.

"Welcome to Suna. Hope the desert wasn't too hot for you," the man cracked, not looking very much older than the rest of them.

"IT was very HOT. It burned my head!" Mister Nago complained, still resting on Michi's back.

"I'm sorry to hear that Mister Nago," the man in face paint addressed with amusement. "Oton's men here Tron and Hui," the man introduced to the men standing behind him, "will be accompanying you to your room. They have been entrusted to give you the set instructions to meet with Oton."

"IT better be a nice STAY. None of that cheap bedding like last time," Nago complained

The man in face paint looked to be annoyed at Nago's complaints as he snickered. He departed soon after, leaving the team to be escorted by Tron and Hui.

Tron and Hui were styled similarly in Sand shinobi fashion, but Tron had bandages on his neck and chin while Hui hand a beanie cap covering his head.

Tron and Hui led them through the village to the hotel-in that they would be staying at. The room was spacious. It held a big king size bed, a sofa, a desk, and drawers.

Nago soon jumped from Michi's back at the sight of the bed and flopped on top of it. Tron and Hui left the team to get settled, telling them that Oton will send one of them to return and deliver the instructions. The meeting was supposed to take place tomorrow, but the when and where was always a new endeavor every year.

Michi rested on the sofa, spreading his tired limbs as Saryie took seat in the desk chair. Azumi scanned the room casually, making her way to the window. She peered outside, taking in the surroundings from the 3rd floor room.

Nago obnoxiously order for one of them to fetch him room service. That he wished to have a hearty course meal and not the instant meals they had packed for the journey. Saryie remarked that they were not his servants. Nago continued to pester as Michi groaned he was not getting up.

"I'll take care of it," Azumi addressed, looking away from her spot at the window.

Nago cheered at that and went on to announced he would be taking a deep soak and no one was to disturb him till the food was here. Nago took his prized bag into the restroom with him, leaving the three alone.

"Any signs from your summons?" Azumi asked, quietly, looking expectantly at Michi.

"Nope, everything seems fine," Michi muttered from the sofa, his arm over his eyes.

"Do you still sense them?" Saryie asked curiously.

"Now that were in the village, no. There's too many chakra networks around. I can't pinpoint a particular type of chakra," Azumi stated heading towards the door. "I'll be back soon. I'm going to scope out the surroundings a bit."

"Don't forget Nago's food!" Michi called.

Azumi nodded as she left. She traveled outside of the hotel, walking around the perimeters. She soon took to the top of the buildings and focus on her genjutsu range. She tried to seek out how many chakra signatures she could feel, testing her abilities.

"You're unauthorized to be up here, leaf ninja," a man's voice came that did not catch Azumi off guard.

She turned to see the familiar man with face paint that met them at the entrance of Suna. Her stare calculating and ambiguous.

"You're too close to the Kazekage tower," the man continued to say, his hands in his pockets.

"My apologies," came Azumi's calm response as she fled to the ground.

The man followed her down to the street.

"Any particular reason you were up there?" He asked, eyeing her.

"I was scoping out the environment."

"Afraid for your charges safety?" the man asked, amused.

Azumi kept her mouth closed as she maneuvered around the village, the man following her.

"Your hotel is back that way," he mentioned as Azumi walked in the opposite direction.

"I am aware of that. My client requested food," Azumi stated.

"Well aren't you an obedient little lap dog," the man muttered with a snicker.

The man continued to follow her as she got her charge food from a shop that the man in face paint suggested.

"I don't need an escort," Azumi stated as she walked back to the hotel.

"So you say…" the man in face paint remarked.

As they rounded to the entrance of the building that they were stay at, the man took his leave.

"I'll see you tomorrow with Oton at 2. Have a good night," the man in face paint remarked.

Azumi headed up to the third floor. She entered the room they were staying in, and knew immediately something was wrong. Michi and Saryie were sitting up straight, rigid. Saryie was holding a white card in her hand. It looked to be that Nago was still in the bathroom. Michi's face was grave as he spilled the news to her.

"My lizards were spotted. I no longer have a connection to them," Michi spoke.

"Was it purposeful?" Azumi asked, evenly.

"I believe so, all of them were served from my connection," Michi answered.

"When was this?" Azumi asked.

"Five minutes after you left."

"What do you have there?" Azumi asked, expectantly at Saryie.

"Hui came by later, twenty minutes after the incident," Saryie answered, handing the card to Azumi that only displayed one number.

"Get Nago out here," Azumi stated.

Saryie banged on the door carelessly, yelling that his food is here. Nago came out in a robe to the much to Saryie's annoyance. He grumbled about a man's privacy as he went for the food that Azumi had gotten him.

Azumi waited for Nago to get settled with the box and chop sticks eating at his dish before handing him the card.

"Hui came by and dropped off this. Mean anything to you?" Azumi pressed, handing him the card with the single number on it.

Nago looked confusedly at it. "This can't be RIGHT. Does Oton REALLY believe I'm going to get up at 5 in the morning for this!" He exclaimed bewildered.

"5? The card says one," Saryie claimed.

Mister Nago sighed. "What's on the card isn't what the card really means. It has been me and Oton's tradition to subtract the number he given me on the card with the number on the door, he has assign to me. Then based on the time he selected is where we meet at," Nago explained. "But NEVER has he been this cruel to me before. Its pitiful to be up such early in the morning at the betting house,"

"Is Mister Oton usually accompanied by that face painted gentleman at these negotiations?" Azumi asked, calculating.

"Kankuro? Why yes." Nago answered.

"I think we're to be deceived," Azumi announced looking back at her team members, creating a confused Nago. "I met with Kankuro tonight, he had said they see us at two, tomorrow. I think who gave us this card, wanted Mister Nago to meet with them at one, not having known the secret time selection that Oton and Nago have designed."

"Makes sense, could have been the ones that have been following us out in the desert," Michi mentioned, casually.

"WHAT? We were being followed. Ooh why has no one warned me. Oh this would not happen if I had Team 10 like always," Nago whined in the mist of eating his noodles.

"Get a grip," Saryie complained as she rolled her eyes at his whining.

"Mister Nago, where would you have met Oton if you were to meet at 1?" Azumi asked.

"At one we meet in the saloon," Nago answered.

"And at 2?"

"The outside of the tea house under an umbrella."

"What are you thinking?" Michi questioned Azumi as she analyzing the situation.

"Send your lizards out on a search for Hui. The real one. I'll notify Kankuro. As of now, our enemy does not know that we're on to them. Let's keep it that way," Azumi stated as her team nodded and as Nago complained.

* * *

 **Omg that was a hard chapter to write. Mostly because it hard for me to come up with interesting mission plot twists like how most Naruto missions go. Plus I have to create many different side characters for this one mission. Haha, but don't worry there is a point to all this.**

 **Please review.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. I do own Saryie, Michi, Azumi, and Nago (unfortunately, lul)**


	6. Chapter 6

**Haha, Alright so we're wrapping up this mission in the chapter. Hope you like it. I will warn you, it's more of an action based chapter. I wrap up the conclusion in the next chapter.**

 **By the way, just wanted to let you all know, updates will be slower. The semester just started up for me and I'm taking 5 classes this time around. I won't have much free time. Good news is I have chapters 7 to 11 already written, but I still have to go back and reedit them before I post them. So it will take time. I do not know when I'll get around to writing chapter 12, it's not my priority when it comes to school work. So I might have time, I might not. No promises.**

 **Stirring Emotions**

* * *

Chapter 6

Mister Nago and Team H approached cautiously in the saloon where he was to meet Oton. The saloon was pretty empty this time of day, making it easy to spot the pudgy man of Mister Oton and his fellow body guards.

Nago had placed a hand protectively over his satchel as he greeted Mister Oton. Oton enthusiastically slammed his beer down and got up to greet Mister Nago. Nago showed the same measure of cheer as he was embraced by Oton.

A sharp sound of metal clinked as it was pierced right through Nago's side. Oton smiled wickedly, stepping away slightly as the gasp filled the room.

However, no blood was drawn from Mister Nago's wound. Before Mister Oton could comprehend 'Mister Nago' poofed and transformed into Michi. The blade still sticking out of Michi's armor. Michi quickly used his hardened armor to punch the seemingly looking 'Oton' in the face.

'Oton' fell back into the chairs and tables of the saloon and poofed into the enemy ninja that had a mask over his face. At the same time, Azumi had disengaged her genjutsu that showed an illusion of Saryie and Michi beside her and threw needles into false Oton's body guards.

The two bodyguards disappeared with a puff of smoke, being mere substitutions of logs.

"Substitutions, eh? Seems your hunch was right," Michi mentioned, confused.

"They wanted to distract us and split our defenses," Azumi stated evenly, as she headed over to the ninja trying to recuperate from Michi's attack.

"What are you after?" Azumi questioned, her voice even to the enemy ninja.

The ninja snickered. "Wouldn't you like to know," the ninja taunted.

Azumi's eyes narrowed as the ninja got up to attack. Azumi was easily able to dodge, noticing the immature skill of the opponent. When she had an opening, she took out a senbon from under her poncho and threw it into the man's foot. He hollered out a curse, falling back.

Azumi took the opportunity to cast a small genjutsu on her opponent, invading his chakra network. It made him disassociate where she currently was in the saloon. Azumi stepped closer as the man stopped to pull out the senbon from his foot.

"Don't make me ask again," Azumi stated, her voice even.

"It won't be so easy, to get me to talk!" The man bellowed as he tried to attack.

He jumped from his position on the floor to tackle Azumi, but went right through her. The man became immediately puzzled as Azumi presence refocused into a new spot in the saloon from the genjutsu. Azumi threw a senbon into his leg this time, and the man cried out.

"The weakest ones always talk," the illusion of Azumi stated, as she stepped closer to the man.

"What kind of witch are you?" The man blubbered, becoming scared and paranoid within his situation, the genjutsu setting off his fear instincts.

"The mere fact you called me a witch indicates you're not a real ninja. You apparently only know some mediocre tricks like substitution, but have not encountered genjutsu. Now, the question is why are you after Nago?"

The man kept his mouth shut, even as the illusion of Azumi seem to multiple and the pain magnified.

"Are you getting anything out of him yet?" Michi asked from beside the real Azumi, who was concentrating.

"No, but I fear it's pointless. He was obviously a decoy," Azumi muttered as her eyes were trained on the man on the floor. "We should probably get going. They're after Oton, most likely."

"What? How can you be sure?"

"They set up this trap as a decoy. The enemy must have been planning this attack for a few years. They knew of Nago's and Oton's routine of meeting with each other. They knew Nago always hired Leaf shinobi for this journey. They must have hoped this little diversion would keep us busy as they got rid of the real target, Oton. Leaving a very unskilled ninja to attack Nago here," Azumi theorized.

"Ugh, you thought they were after Nago. That's why you spilt the team up," Michi exclaimed with a sigh.

"That's what I had initially thought. That's why I sent Saryie and Nago to the real rendezvous point that Kankuro had set. I didn't however expect that two of 'Oton's' bodyguards would be substitutions. The other two enemy ninjas must be with Oton to eliminate him. That's how I know there not after Nago or his satchel, but they will eliminate Nago now that we sent him and Saryie into their way," Azumi summarized.

"We definitely need to get going then," Michi whined as Azumi nodded.

"Give me a minute, I want to know who these people are first," Azumi stated as she put more concentration into her genjutsu.

Azumi dove back in to her genjutsu the enemy ninja was seeing. She increased the pain by throwing senbon into the man's limbs. He hollered, his eyes becoming watery.

"I'll talk! I'll talk!" The man yelled.

"Who are you?"

"I'm nobody I swear! I just wanted to get back at Nago! He always bossed me around too much. When I got an offer to join the two ninja who wanted revenge too on Nago and Oton too, I agreed to help. I gave them information on the meetings. That's all!" the man bellowed.

"You're a servant in Nago's estate, aren't you?" Azumi clarified.

The man nodded ashamed.

"What two ninja came to you?" Azumi asked.

"I don't know their real names! But they hail from the Village hidden in the Rocks."

"That'll do," Azumi illusion stated as it started to blur.

The real Azumi threw a paralyzing senbon into the man's chest, breaking the genjutsu.

"Let's go. I'll tell you on the way," Azumi stated as she headed out of the saloon.

Michi followed close behind her as Azumi told him what she knows. They sped up their pace, hoping to reach Saryie and Nago in time.

* * *

On the other side of the village, Saryie escorted Mister Nago to the rendezvous point with two of her water clones that looked like Michi and Azumi. Saryie was on guard and it wasn't helping that Nago was freaking out and not acting natural. He was clutching his brown satchel to his chest for dear life.

"Could you be any more obvious," Saryie remarked lowly.

"How dare YOU. My life is in danger and you are basically making ME walk the plank here," Nago screeched, attracting attention.

"Will you keep it down. I will protect you. Everything is going to be fine, but I need you to act calm," Saryie claimed from behind him.

Her water clone of Michi was to the side Mister Nago and Azumi to the other side of him. She saw Nago take deep breaths as they made their way through the hot sands to the teahouse where they were to meet the real Oton. Saryie was still unsure if this was a set up.

Saryie trusted in Azumi's predictions, but Azumi could still be wrong. Saryie didn't know who was behind this. It could be Oton for all she knew so she was keeping her guard up.

As they entered the tea house, Saryie did not spy any thing out of the ordinary. Her water clones lead the way to a back door that went to the outside patio of the Teahouse. Her water clones exited first, spying Oton sitting under an umbrella waving a fan to his face.

Oton's two body guards were present. The fake Tron was by the entrance to the patio while the fake Hui was beside Oton. Kankuro was present as well, he stood casually off to the side in middle territory. His main job for these types of meetings were to supervise, in order to protect the interests of the Sand Village. Kankuro had been informed of the imposters of Hui and Tron, and waited to make his move.

Oton padded the table merrily upon Nago's arrival, putting down his fan.

"NAGO my old friend, it's been awhile. Come sit and I had just ordered some tea. It'll be out in a minute," Oton spoke waving his hand forward to his friend.

Nago approached cautiously, his hand on his bag protectively. Saryie would have slapped her forehead if she could at that moment. He was not acting calm.

"Oton, I HOPE you wish NOT to betray ME, my old friend."

"Betray you?" Oton looked quizzically from his tea.

Saryie knew Nago blew their cover and just like that she felt the fake Tron's presence move to strike as well did Hui moved to strike. Saryie quickly stood in the way of Tron's blade with her kunai, blocking his attempt at Mister Nago. Hui's attempt at Oton was blocked by Kankuro's puppet, Crow.

"Wrong move," Kankuro snickered as he released Crow's jaw to unleash senbon at Hui.

The fake Hui jumped away from the assault nearly in time, until he was captured in the arms of Oton. Surprised, the ninja went to stab at Oton, but had no effect as Oton's skin decayed in another one of Kankuro's puppets, the Black Ant.

The fake Tron quickly backed away, he lost his disguise as Tron. Saryie noted the distinct head band of the Village Hidden in the Rocks. He wore a gray outfit, and a black hankie over his nose and mouth. The man began performing hand signs before throwing his hand on the ground.

"Earth style. Stone spikes."

The ground shook as Saryie quickly grabbed Nago and leapt to safety away from the stone spikes that shot up from the ground where they stood. Her one water clone of Azumi being hit by the spikes while the other survived, dodging. Saryie let her water clone distract the rock ninja for a bit as she landed on the teahouse building and placed Nago down, who began to panic.

"MY SATCHEL. Where is my SATCHEL?" Nago looked expectantly around for it before spotting it on the ground with a torn strap from the stone spikes. He grabbed Saryie's shoulders un-expectantly, shaking her. "YOU MUST GET MY SATCHEL. You swore!" Nago screeched as the real Azumi and Michi showed up beside them.

"I CAN hear you okay!?" Saryie shouted frustrated, eyeing the bag. "Michi protect Nago, they're after him."

"Get my bag!" Nago demanded, with his fist in the air.

Saryie growled as she leapt off the building back into action, noticing Kankuro was still fighting the Ninja 'Hui'. Saryie made a quick bee-line for the satchel Nago was complaining about when she felt her second water clone dispersed.

Saryie was in the midst of grabbing the bag when the rock ninja who pretended to be Tron came after her. Saryie was able to make quick dodge from his attack and twisted her body in turn to kick him in the stomach. The rock ninja flew back from impact as Azumi appeared behind Saryie to cover for Saryie's flank as a clone tried to attack from the rear. Azumi exterminated the clone efficiently with a senbon in hand.

"You need to stay vigilant," Azumi critiqued.

"Hn, I guess a thanks is in order," Saryie smirked as she watch the enemy ninja get up from her attack.

"Possibly," Azumi stated, her eyes now on Kankuro's battle. "Try not to die," Azumi stated as she fled from Tron's next attack.

Saryie smirked as hidden stone dunes rose from the ground, making the battle field uneven. Saryie ran through them like an obstacle course, trying to reach her target. Azumi held back running away from the dunes, realizing they were creating a maze as she took to the air.

It was too late for Saryie by the time Azumi had the chance to warn her. Saryie became trapped by four stone walls the final piece shutting on top of her blocking her light and escape. The rock ninja taunted as Azumi lightly heard Saryie curse. The enemy ninja began to close in the stone walls.

Azumi immediately began forming hand signs casting an illusion in hopes to buy Saryie more time.

"Michi!" Azumi called out as she trapped the rock ninja, fake 'Hui', and Kankuro in a genjutsu.

Michi understood as he did hand signs as he summoned more lizards that were much bigger than the last. The lizards began digging beneath the sands surface.

Azumi made the rock ninja see herself running towards him throwing senbon. The ninja thought he was blocking them and performing more stone spear jutsu. Fake 'Hui' saw himself continuing to evade Kankuro's puppets. Azumi made Kankuro see nothing but herself in front of him. She told him to remain calm, that he was under a genjutsu.

The rock ninja soon realized he was under a genjutsu when he could not cast his next jutsu perfectly. He released the genjutsu and let out a haughtily laugh.

"HA! You thought that would stop me. Your friend is dead," the enemy ninja declared as he smashed the four corner stones together where Saryie was.

"Think again," Saryie stated as she leapt up from the hole in the ground dug by the lizards in front of him, clutching the satchel in one hand.

She came up under the ninja and had punched him under his chin. The rock ninja was sent flying in the air and Saryie jumped to spin kick him in the gut. He soon fell with a mighty thud as Saryie followed after him.

While rock ninja was distracted by Saryie's beating. Azumi sent paralyzing senbon into fake Hui's back, releasing him from genjutsu. Azumi released Kankuro then from his genjutsu and Kankuro surveyed is surrounding. He was taken back by the lump of fake Hui on the ground and Saryie beating up a rock ninja.

"Saryie," Azumi called.

Saryie leapt away from him and before the ninja could do anything, Kankuro had captured him in the Black Ant.

"Did you get MY bag?!" Nago screeched form the roof top.

"YES I got your stupid bag!" Saryie shouted annoyed as she went to throw the bag up towards Nago on the roof, enraged.

The contents spilled as it landed in front of Michi.

"MY SATCHEL!" Nago screeched as he tried to collect the tea leafs back into his bag.

"Uh… Don't let Saryie see this," Michi muttered quietly as he watched Nago, eyeing Azumi.

Azumi sighed, understanding that Saryie would have fit if she was protecting Nago's bag that just had tea leaves in it.

"You leaf shinobi aren't half bad. I had found the real Hui and Tron earlier today. They had warned me that these rock ninjas were after Oton," Kankuro stated.

"Is the real Hui and Tron doing well now?" Saryie asked concern, looking over to Kankuro.

"They'll be fine. They mostly just suffered a knock out gas and were a bit dehydrated, since having been tied up in the desert," Kankuro informed, crossing the battle field, coming closer to Saryie.

"What will happen to these ninja?" Azumi asked, evenly.

Kankuro looked up at Azumi who was still on the roof of the building with Michi and Mister Nago, clutching his bag. Kankuro smirked at her.

"Don't worry. They'll get what's coming to them. Sand's Anbu will take the ninja in and interrogate them, find out who they work for and why they tried to pull this stunt."

"I had left an enemy ninja paralyzed at the saloon that we encountered. It be best you send Anbu over to arrest him. I found out he was one of Nago's servant's, that didn't like Nago's company very much. He's the one that gave explicit details to this gathering of Oton and Nago," Azumi reported.

"WHAT?! Who was it? Let me shove MY boot in there face. How dare they. After all the things I do for them," Nago muttered to himself, with his chin up.

"Very well," Kankuro mentioned, his eyes trailing over Nago's form but then back to Azumi. "As of now, your team is to follow me. I was given the special duty to escort you four to Mister Oton himself, once this mess here was finished," Kankuro stated, turning back to look at Saryie.

Anbu showed up right afterwards, taking the enemy rock ninja into custody. Kankuro sent two more Anbu to collect the ninja left in the saloon.

Azumi and Michi soon jumped down with Nago as they began to follow Kankuro's lead across the village to a remote condo. Mister Nago was finally able to meet with Mister Oton to discuss business. Oton was severely concerned about Nago's safety and was relieved to see his friend in top shape.

Oton was hefty and hearty. Oton thanked the brave leaf ninja who kept Nago safe. Oton then asked if Nago brought the bag to which Nago responded.

Saryie was soon enraged when she found out the satchel contained only tea leaves. Michi had to hold her back before she could punch Nago for putting their life endanger for tea leaves. Saryie calmed down quickly as Nago and Oton had their chat.

The most Saryie got out of the conversation of the two as they sipped their new tea was about land and estates. They were also wrestling up how they should connect their fortune somehow with an arranged marriage between their relatives. It was really boring.

They talked until midnight, enjoying each other company and sipping on tea. They finally agreed on business by the end of the night and Saryie was happy to finally leave Mister Oton's private condo.

Team H took Mister Nago back to his hotel room so they could get some rest before the trip back home. They left early in the morning, wanting to beat the blazing heat at midday, after Azumi received a report on the interrogations of the enemy rock ninja from Kankuro.

Mister Nago was just as annoying on the trip back home as he was on the trip there. He complained about it being hot and being sweaty. Michi would groan he wanted a break since Nago was again riding on Michi's back. Azumi was just relieved not to feel anyone else's chakra signatures except theirs. Saryie was ready to get home. She didn't want a break, she just wanted an eternity away from Nago.

They made it out of the desert within three days and headed through the tense forest of the Land of Fire to drop Nago back off at his village. When the team reached the estate, Nago offered them rest for the night.

The team took it, having need for a full night's rest, even though they were eager to get home.

The next day they were off to Konoha and were surprised to learn what had happened while they were gone.

* * *

 **Mission over but uh oh what happened in Konoha? Wait and see next chapter.**

 **Please leave a review on your thoughts and guesses.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. I do own Saryie, Michi, and Azumi**


	7. Chapter 7

**A little bit of a short update. Hope it was worth the wait.**

 **This chapter basically is around the time frame after season 3 of Naruto Shippuden and before the start of season 4. In the chapter, I remind you what happened in season three, in case you forgot.**

* * *

 **Stirring Emotions**

Chapter 7

"Whoa, what happen to the village?" Saryie commented as the team entered the gates of Konoha.

There was minimal damage done to the village as civilians were making repairs to the damaged area. It was clear there had been a battle at the gate of Konoha. Michi was stunned but quickly spotted a familiar silhouette.

"Hey, Shikamaru. Wait up!" Michi called as he jogged lightly over to him.

Saryie was right behind Michi, knowing Michi was going to ask Shikamaru what had happened while they were away. Shikamaru had halted in his step as he turned back to the approaching trio.

"Michi, I see you're back from your mission," Shikamaru stated. "How did escorting Mister Nago go?"

"It was a pain, made me carry him practically everywhere. I can't believe you had to deal with him every year," Michi poured out, getting distracted.

"Eh, yea Choji use to complain about the same thing," Shikamaru responded. "The mission went by pretty smoothly though, right?"

"Ha, I wish. Mister Nago got targeted by some Rock ninja. I would have liked the mission to have gone a lot smoother like the past ones you described," Michi complained.

"Huh, he was targeted? So what happened?" Shikamaru asked shocked.

"Well, on the way to Suna…" Michi began but was immediately cut off.

"MICHI! You can tell him about that later," Saryie complained, wanting answers.

Shikamaru's eyes left Michi's to Saryie's noticing her impatient nature.

"Oh yea, so what happened here?" Michi asked, back on task gesturing to the repairs.

Shikamaru looked to where Michi had gestured and sighed heavily.

"The village had come under attack while you three were gone. A man name Furido tried to eliminate the village with the limelight jutsu and when that failed he tried to unleash Sora's nine-tail charka on the village," Shikamaru rasped, drily.

"Sora? Who's Sora?" Saryie asked, perplex.

"He's a monk from the Fire Temple," Shikamaru answered.

"What happened to him?" Michi questioned, gravely.

"Naruto was able to stop him. He's alright now. He wasn't at fault for the nine-tails rampage. He's off to see the world actually," Shikamaru answered, scratching his head.

"And Furido what became of him?" Saryie asked, her eyes narrowed.

"Furido was stopped by Asuma with help from Sai who escaped from the hospital," Shikamaru replied, vaguely.

"Hospital?" Saryie questioned, surprised.

"Yea, he broke his arm during his mission. Naruto wound up in the hospital too due to his injuries from his fight with Sora. But anyhow, I got to get going," Shikamaru drawled, with a slight yawn, "Asuma is waiting on me. Michi maybe later we can meet up and you can tell me what happened on the Nago mission."

"Alright, sounds good," Michi nodded, in agreement with a smile.

"We need to get going too. The Hokage is waiting on us," Azumi stated, having looked uninterested at the state of the village.

"See you around," Shikamaru stated after having looked over at Azumi's disposition.

Shikamaru then headed on his way as Team H headed over to the Hokage's tower. Azumi and the team entered after having knocked on Tsunade's office door. Tsunade was a bit stunned at their arrival.

"You three are early. Was the mission a success?" Tsunade questioned, down to the point.

"Yes, Tsunade-sama," Azumi answered.

"Good. Then filling out the mission report should be a breeze. I expect it no later than tomorrow morning. I have other paperwork I need to get to," Tsunade declared, trying to gesture them out, turning back to her paperwork at her desk.

"Understood," Azumi responded as she bowed.

"Wait I still have a bone to pick with the mission you gave us!" Saryie complained, stepping forward.

"Oh right, that reminds me," Tsunade recalled as she stopped what she was doing and reached across her desk for a scroll. She then threw it toward Saryie, which she caught. "I have a D-rank mission assigned for you." Tsunade smiled at Saryie's scowl.

"Saryie just drop it," Michi called, sighing.

"No! Mister Nago is a- "

"You better cut it out right there. Mister Nago is a long standing client. I heard no complaints when Team 10 handled the mission. You're a shinobi, you better start acting like it," Tsunade scolded, slamming her fist on the desk.

"But he had us fight to protect his tea leafs and-"

"Mister Nago owns many plantations and makes his fortune off of selling different kind of teas, herbs, and fruit to certain types of businesses. Oton is a ready buyer and long time friend to Mister Nago in Suna. Oton owns many establishments through Suna along with other areas in the Land of Fire and Land of Rivers. Mister Nago takes special care in protecting his fortune and his business. Having become a big resource and target to those in his village and surrounding villages. Now quit acting like a genin and start acting like a chunin, or you be getting more d-rank missions," Tsunade threatened, her voice raised.

Saryie pursed her lips at that as she grunted.

"I told you to let it go," Michi gloated.

"You're dismissed," Tsunade called, her voice lowered again as she turned back to her desk.

"There is one thing Tsunade-sama," Azumi spoke, regaining Tsunade's attention. "Mister Oton and Mister Nago were targeted in Suna. We caught the perpetrators. One happened to be a servant to Mister Nago in his estate. The other two were Rock ninja sent to eliminate the ties between Oton and Nago by assassinating both of them. Suna's anbu had interrogated them after capture. The Rock ninja were hired because the hidden Rock village was trying to cut down Oton's power in the region and to destroy the supply neighboring villages get from Nago's herbs."

Tsunade's eyes narrowed at the information. "I see. I expect a detail report. This is the first time we had an encounter with the Rock Village in a long time. But for now, you're free to leave."

As the team began to leave, Tsunade stopped Saryie. "Saryie, I expect your d-rank mission to be finished within a week," Tsunade snickered as Saryie groaned.

Team H made their leave with Saryie having her arms crossed and pouting slightly. They made their way out of the Hokage's building. Michi soon departed, wanting to finally shower and relax for the rest of the night. Azumi too soon fled; she made her way home to fill out the mission report, which left Saryie all alone.

Saryie didn't stay grumpy for long. She stashed her D-rank assignment into her pouch as she made her way home. She wanted to shower and get clean as well and unpack.

It didn't take her long to shower and unpack. She left her apartment in no time. She didn't care to rest at the moment. Resting was for the nighttime. Plus, with her given free time now, she thought it be nice of her to check up on Sai and Naruto in the hospital.

Saryie made her way to the hospital and found the room Sai and Naruto were both occupying. When Saryie entered the room, Sai was sitting up right in the hospital bed as Sakura was checking on Naruto's injuries.

"Hey chicken legs," Saryie greeted Sai.

"Thick thighs," Sai said unwitty, without hesitance, slightly surprised to see her there.

"Sai!" Sakura scolded, angered and thought Saryie would retaliate.

"Hi Sakura, hello Naruto," Saryie greeted.

Sakura was surprised that Saryie was not angered by Sai's comment, but then realized Saryie had greet Sai with a nickname as well. Sakura quickly greeted Saryie back as she watched Sai and Saryie's behavior closely. Naruto tilted his head to the side as he stared as Saryie.

"Do I know you?"

Sakura hit Naruto on the back of the head for being rude and Saryie laughed.

"You might. I know you Naruto. We were in the academy together," Saryie mentioned, coolly with a smirk.

Naruto rubbed his head from where Sakura had hit him. "Nah, I still don't recall you," Naruto mentioned, squinting his eyes.

Saryie chuckled. "That's fine. I knew you mostly because you were always getting in trouble and being called on by Iruka," Saryie answered, lightly.

"Oh, what are you doing here?" Naruto questioned, softly.

"Came by to see how you two were doing," Saryie stated as she glanced from Naruto to Sai.

Sai's eyes were solely focused on Saryie, analyzing her. Saryie's eyes shifted back to Sakura and Naruto after connecting eyes with Sai's.

"I had heard what happened to the village. I wanted to make sure you two were ok," Saryie finished.

"Oh well I'm right as rain. I'll be back to normal in no time! And soon I'll be back the special training Kakashi-sensei had come up with for me," Naruto cheered.

"What type of training are you working on?" Saryie asked, intrigued.

"Uh…. Chakra change in something or another. You know I forgot," Naruto laughed, bashfully.

Saryie chuckled at that, as she turned to Sai. "How did you break your arm?" Saryie questioned with a raised eyebrow.

"By saving Sakura," Sai mentioned, bluntly.

Saryie's eyes widened slightly.

"Stupidly, I may add," Sakura mentioned drawing Saryie's attention back to her.

"It was the right gesture, according to my book," Sai stated, blankly, looking at Sakura.

Sakura sighed as Saryie kept her eyes on Sai, trying to digest this new information.

"Yea, me and Sai are two heroes," Naruto quipped.

"Not in my book, you're two idiots!" Sakura mentioned.

Saryie laughed. "Well I'm glad you both are ok. I'll see you some other time," Saryie said as she farewell them, making her exit.

Sai watched Saryie's departure, curious if she had really come check on him because she was concerned about his wellbeing. Naruto's goofy retort with Sakura brought Sai's attention back to the present as Sakura continued to analyze Naruto's injuries.

* * *

 **Kind of a short chapter. But next chapter sets up a new mission and stuff. Sai is keen on Saryie's strange behavior but doesn't know what to make of it so far. :D Hope you enjoyed.**

 **Please Review.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. I do own Saryie, Azumi, and Michi**


	8. Chapter 8

**This chapter was hard for me to write. You have no idea. Takes place right after the start of season 4 episode 72 when Naruto begins chakra training and Sai's arm is all healed up. I am very satisfied with the way this chapter came out and I hope you are too. Enjoy.**

* * *

 **Stirring Emotions**

Chapter 8

"Saryie!"

"Yea?" Saryie's voice rang out as she stopped what she was doing to look across the way at Michi's grinning face.

"You been sprung, kid. We got a new mission," Michi spoke, smirking.

"FINALLY!" Saryie cheered as she sprinted over to Michi.

"Whoa-ho ho there. You should shower first," Michi advised, crinkling his nose. "I don't wanna be traveling with you smelling like that."

"What do you expect, I've been rounding up the livestock all morning," Saryie spoke, agitated.

"I was still half expecting you to still smell like a female," Michi mocked, covering his nose. "But it seems too smell worse than when my sister blows up the bathroom."

"Ugh, your unbelievable," Saryie muttered, disgusted.

"Least mine don't smell as bad," Michi said, amused.

"Michi don't make me throw you in the pig pin," Saryie warned.

She was so happy to be finally relieved of her D-rank mission assignments. For the past week, she had to pull weeds, clean up trash, find lost cats, walk dogs, feed the livestock, and this was the new one of the week which was hurdle the pigs into the pig pin. Of course she didn't smell good and Michi had to mock her about it. This was her punishment after all by Lady Tsunade. That scroll she had thrown at Saryie had listed all the missions that she had to complete during the week.

It annoyed Saryie, but Saryie wasn't afraid of getting her hands dirty. Her parents owned a farm after all. She just wished her skills could be applied more appropriately to higher ranking mission. These silly D-rank missions only reminded her of her genin days with her team.

She used to complain back then too, except she was always happy when they had to track down lost cats, because that mission did require her speed. Saryie smiled fondly at the memory as she raced home.

She took a shower quickly, making sure her whole body was fresh and clean before heading to the Hokage tower. As she ran to the Hokage Tower, she passed by the Hospital. Saryie wondered how Sai was. She hadn't visited him after her last visit. She knew Naruto was back on his feet and training once more.

Saryie really hoped this next mission Tsunade had in store was worthwhile. As Saryie approached the Hokage's office and entered, she was surprised it wasn't Team H who been summoned.

"Good, Saryie you're here. Now we can get started," Tsunade bellowed as she gestured Saryie forward.

Saryie stepped forward coming to Michi's other side, and focused on Tsunade's next words. It wasn't often when Tsunade assembled a five-man squad.

"Sakura Haruno, Neji Hyuga, Sai, Michi Haruki, and Saryie Hatake. You five have been assigned to an A-rank mission in the Land of Gems," Tsunade informed, seriously, her eyes piercing through each ninja. "Your mission is to guard and protect Shui and Nali."

Shizune placed the files with pictures of the two girls on top of Tsunade's desk in front of the five.

"They're heiress to the Land of Gem's royal bloodline of the Yuan clan," Shizune began to explain. "The Land of Gems have been recently falling into conflict and the royal family fears for their safety. They fear an underground civil war is approaching that plans to annihilate the entire governance that has been established."

"In order to protect the Land of Gem's legacy and future, the clan's leader wishes to sneak his daughters out of the city and have us take them to the Land of Stones. There they'll be safe until stability can be reached within the Land of Gems and this rebellion squashed," Tsunade addressed, her eyes sharp.

"This mission is to be top secret so remain inconspicuous when you enter into the Land of Gems. Neji will be your team captain. You are to leave at once. Any questions?" Tsunade asked.

"Yes, why is Neji team captain?" Saryie spoke, annoyed.

Tsunade's eyes narrowed. "Neji is a jonin unlike you Saryie. He is more than capable to lead this mission. I hand picked all of you for this team. I don't want to hear complaints about it. Now get out," Tsunade called.

The five-man squad bowed and left. Neji directed them each to quickly gather what they needed for the mission and meet at the gates soon after. It wasn't long before everyone reported to the gates and they were off.

Neji led the way with Sai, Sakura, Saryie behind him and Michi at the tail of the pack. On the journey, Saryie's attention was drawn to Sakura as Sakura called her.

"Saryie, did I hear correctly that your last name is Hatake?" Sakura asked curious as she glanced over to Saryie while they ran.

Saryie's eyes flickered over to Sakura as she ran. "Yes," Saryie answered flatly, her lips pursed.

"Are you by chance related to Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura asked.

Saryie sighed. "Yes, he's my dad's cousin. Their fathers were brothers," Saryie stated, straight faced.

Sakura could sense the tension coming from Saryie on the subject and decided not to pursue it. Sai having overheard, glanced over at Saryie. He too noted her unusual behavior on the subject.

They traveled for a good long while, Neji every twenty minutes or so checking with his byakugan. Saryie's mood was back to normal, almost too ecstatic. Neji would have to call her back a couple of times to keep them in formation and remind her not to get ahead of the pack. Saryie would sigh at Neji and make snide comments at him to which Neji would ignore.

It wasn't until the sun was setting that Neji called the team to a stop amongst the trees.

"We'll rest here for the night," Neji stated as he deactivated his byakugan.

"Oh thank goodness," Michi spoke as he dropped his pack from his back. He stretched his body before immediately dropping to the forest floor, relaxing.

"Michi you can't honestly be that tired," Saryie complained as she looked to her fallen companion.

"I'm not, but I will accept any down time that I can get," Michi mentioned, his eyes closed and hands under his head. "Stop disturbing the peace, Saryie."

Saryie rolled her eyes, catching Neji unwinding as well. Neji had removed his pack from his back and was sitting by a tree. Sakura had dropped her pack as well and was observing her surroundings.

"I'm going to gather some firewood," Sakura stated.

"That's a good idea. There is no other chakra signatures in the area and it will be a cold night. Saryie, you should help her," Neji stated.

"Why me?" Saryie asked, annoyed.

"To exert your excess energy elsewhere," Neji calmly replied.

Saryie grunted as she made her way into the forest to find firewood along with Sakura. Sai watched them leave and began to unpack his sleeping mat. Neji soon requested Sai's assistance, in finding food for the night. They had packed food for the trip, but to conserve on it, they needed to use the resources of the forest. Neji spotted rabbits with his byakugan and sent Sai on the right path.

When the girls got back with firewood, Sakura started the fire after Neji set up the fire pit. Sai soon returned with two rabbits. They were cooked and shared among the group, Saryie having kick Michi to get him to get up to eat. Neji remarked on their lack of maturity. Saryie retorted on his ego and Michi complained that it was cold. Sakura was annoyed with the banter, having reminded her a lot of her team's genin days with Naruto.

The sun had completely disappeared and the night sky was shining with stars. Michi had knocked out soon after eating his rabbit, sleeping close to the fire. The fire crackled and everyone had their sleeping bags set up.

"Saryie will take the first watch, then Sai. After Sai, it will be Michi and then Sakura and myself," Neji stated, having taken his spot by the tree once more where his mat was set.

Saryie stuck out her tongue at Neji but didn't argue. They had been on missions before. Saryie knew it was better if she was the first to take watch, because once she fell asleep, she was a heavy sleeper. She wouldn't wake up for anything until morning. Everyone agreed with the order Neji had assigned, except Michi since he was already asleep. Michi could fall asleep easily and didn't need much sleep to function. It was best for him to take to middle watch since it was easy for him to get up and be able to sleep again once his shift was over. He was such a light sleeper.

Sakura and Neji soon fell asleep on their respected mats as well, leaving Saryie and Sai awake. Saryie sat by the fire for a while as everyone settled for the night. Sai soon came to sit beside her.

"Aren't you going to rest?" Saryie asked, curious.

"Not much point in resting if I'm right after you. It's easier to stay up until my shift is over," Sai stated, rationally.

"Makes sense," Saryie stated, looking into the fire.

"Neji and you seem to be very familiar with each other," Sai mentioned, his eyes peering over at her.

Saryie smirked and gave a small laugh. "Hn, yea we known each other ever since he was placed on Rock Lee's team. He used to belittle Rock Lee a lot because of Lee's dream. I used to watch them spar together. I always wanted Lee to kick Neji's narcissistic butt. I had tried confronting Neji once or twice myself in my genin days. He would never fight me, though. He would brush me off. When Naruto had beat him in the chunin exams, I felt like Neji finally got what he deserved. He came off his high horse, but he still won't fight me" Saryie explained, her fist clench.

Sai analyzed her, his gaze steady. "You're too brash."

Saryie eyes snapped to his. "You're too blunt."

Sai gave a fake smile at that. "I suppose, beautiful."

"Why do you do that?" Saryie asked, inquisitively.

"Do what?" Sai asked, his façade falling.

"Why do you fake emotions?" Saryie questioned, unfazed.

Sai eyed her soft features, noting she was truly interested in understanding. "I was trained not to express emotions," Sai stated.

"A trained solider… willing to abide by commands," Saryie spoke softly to herself, her eyes softening, grasping understanding.

"It beats trying to contain a brash ninja like Naruto and yourself" Sai mentioned, offhandedly, ripping his gaze away from Saryie.

"I rather be myself than a puppet," Saryie remarked, agitated at Sai's comment.

"Neji doesn't fight you, because you're too easy to beat. It be a waste of his time and skill," Sai stated, monotone, oblivious to Saryie's growing anger.

Saryie clenched her fist, finding it hard to contain herself.

Sai picked up on the shift of her mood and kept his eyes on the fire. "Naruto wouldn't have defeated Neji in the chunin exams if it wasn't for his extra chakra from the nine-tails. It wasn't just his will alone. You don't have any special chakra or trait like Naruto. You wouldn't be strong enough to defeat Neji, or Naruto for that matter. You might never be. You're just another leaf shinobi."

Sai was cut off as Saryie went to punch him in the face. Sai stopped her attack with his hand and eyed her narrowed eyes. She was shaking with anger, but her eyes were glossy. She was fighting back tears as she glared at Sai heavily.

"I might just be another leaf shinobi, but at least I can think and feel on my own. I don't have to be told how to live. I can leave a lasting impression on this world, but you…. You are a pawn. Pawns don't leave impressions on the Earth. There here and then there gone. Your way of life is meaningless, if you can't feel," Saryie stated, her eyes holding his. Her body had stopped shaking as she pulled back her fist.

Saryie got up soon after, turning away from Sai.

"I'm going to go train, I'll be back in a bit," Saryie stated in a voice that sounded distant as she walked off into the forest.

Sai's eyes fell off her figure as she disappeared in the forest. His eyes gazed back at the fire, her words floating around in his head. He wasn't sure how he felt about it. It bothered him but he had no idea why. He wasn't used to feeling.

Saryie didn't come back for a while, and when she did, she didn't look at Sai. She laid down on her sleeping bag and soon fell asleep, leaving Sai to his thoughts. The rest of the night went well without a hitch. Michi was easy to awaken as Sai finally laid down to rest. After Michi's watch, he woke Sakura up and Sakura woke Neji up after her watch.

Sakura and Neji stayed up for the rest of the early hours. Sakura finding it hard to fall back to sleep. Neji check their surroundings with his byakugan. Soon Sakura and Neji began waking up the rest of their team members when the sun began to rise. However, Sakura found it difficult to wake Saryie up, trying to shake her lightly and then roughly.

Sai was packing up his sleeping bag as he overheard Michi laugh.

"No, no, you have to wake her like this," Michi stated as he reached down to tickle Saryie's sides.

Saryie began squirming and laughed as she woke up. Sakura was stunned, she never seen someone sleep so soundly out on a mission before. It was unusual for a ninja.

"Morning already?" Saryie mentioned as she yawned, her hair disheveled.

"Yes, and it be great if we could depart soon," Neji stated, already standing up with his pack strapped to his back.

"Just hold your horses," Saryie retorted as she got up.

Sakura stood up and grabbed her bag as Sai did the same. Michi continued packing up his stuff as well. Saryie and Michi were soon ready and Neji again lead the team as they departed.

Sai glanced at Saryie as they traveled. It seems she was back to normal. She still was eager to travel and get to the mission.

It took another couple of days to get to the Land of Gems. Neji having them stop at night fall and rising with the sun. The same night watches were the same. Saryie didn't seemed angered with Sai for what Sai could tell. She didn't avoid him or ignore him. They wouldn't sit by each other the next night during their watch. They were both silent, as they watched the fire, until Saryie got bored and went off to train.

The second night, Saryie sat beside Sai after the other team members fell asleep. She invaded his personal space and he was on guard. He was unsure what her intention was.

"I'm sorry for saying your life was meaningless the other night," Saryie started, her tone soft.

Sai body was tense as he studied her. He was not expecting her to apologize. Not that it mattered to him what she said to him. He sat quiet as he listened to her.

"It was not right of me to say that whether or not it affected you. I know you can feel something. It's impossible not to feel something, you're human after all. You couldn't have been born like this. You were made like this and it's not your fault," Saryie stated, her eyes holding fast into his, not wavering.

She soon gave him a small smile. It was genuine and it made Sai's chest clench in reaction. He was boggled with his body's reaction as she got up. Saryie wished him a goodnight as she went to lay down in her sleeping bag. Sai was left confused, suddenly missing the warmth of the body that was sitting next to him. He watched the fire for the rest of the night as he contemplated these new feelings.

* * *

 **So wow, I hoped you enjoyed this bit. Sai is definitely experiencing something new. Saryie can only keep stirring up more emotions from here from Sai. Please review. It be appreciated.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, I do own Saryie, Michi, and Azumi.**


	9. Chapter 9

**Wooo chapter 9. Be excited. This is where stuff gets going. Hope you like it.**

* * *

 **Stirring Emotions**

Chapter 9

Before the team entered the Land of Gems, they discarded their forehead protectors. They disguised themselves as travelers/tourists, not wanting to draw obvious attention. This mission was of utmost importance to the safety of the heiresses of the Yuan clan.

Neji had mapped out their path through the Land of Gems. He wanted to take scattered routes to the destination where they were to meet the royal escorts to the palace. They split off into twos as they roamed the city, Neji being the exception of being by himself.

When Saryie and Michi had spilt off to roam the city, Saryie could feel the unease of the city. The city was bustling, but the locals seemed to be on edge. It was a dainty city.

They all met at dusk at a clothing shop that was specified in the report for the mission. This is where they were to meet the escorts. Neji gave the secret message to the shopkeeper, who nodded and showed the team to a back room. It was there they met with the palace guards that were to escort them through a hidden passage way into the palace.

The team arrived inside the palace, they were then escorted through the halls and to one of the palace's many rooms where the Yuan's clan leader waited. He seemed a little on edge, but was filled with relief as the guards introduced the leaf shinobi.

"Oh thank heavens you arrived. I've been worrying you wouldn't make it in time," the leader spoke, rushing before turning to the guardsmen, "Bring my daughters."

Neji cleared his throat before he spoke after watching one of the guardsmen leave to retrieve the girls. "Our mission stated to be here at dusk, if I may sir, why would you fear us not being here on time?" Neji questioned, his tone professional.

"I understand your confusion but I wasn't sure how much longer my daughters would be safe here. I'm even risking a lot now by asking you leaf shinobi for help," the leader gushed.

"Has there been a threat made against your life, sir?" Neji asked, his tone even.

The man fidgeted as he shook his head, their attention soon drawn to the two guardsmen that brought the leader's daughters in. They were both young in age.

Saryie guessed one was 13 and the other was 8. They both had light blonde hair and light blue eyes. They were in traditional kimonos from the land of Gems. The youngest had a lavender colored kimono on and the other heiress had a pink one on.

The father ran to them and kissed their foreheads multiple times as he spoke. "These nice ninjas will be taking you both somewhere safe. I need you to listen to them and follow them. Remember what I told you before. I'll see you soon."

The two girls had tears in their eyes at the farewell with their father as they tried to remain composed. The father than turned to the leaf shinobi. "Alright, you will need to leave right away. I will show you the way out."

"Wait, we're leaving right now?" Saryie blurted out, confused.

"Yes, that is correct," the leader stopped to mention, gravely.

"Pardon me, but we were informed we would leave in the morning," Neji stated, perplexed.

"Yes, but plans have changed. I can't afford to have my daughters' safety compromised any longer. They need to leave tonight," the leader urged.

"Why the change in plans?" Sakura questioned as well, her eyes narrowed.

"Rumors… I've heard word that the rebellion will strike the palace at midnight," the leader spoke earnestly.

"Well let's stay and fight them," Saryie declared, determined.

"No, it is not our mission to get involved with the internal affairs of the state. Our mission is plain and simple. We protect and escort his two daughters to safety," Neji stated, stern as he glared at Saryie.

Saryie didn't like the vibes the clan leader was putting out as they began to follow him the underground levels of the palace. He had dismissed his guards and was holding on to his daughters' arms in a tight lock. He seemed paranoid. Saryie knew his daughters' lives were endangered, but Saryie had the feeling he was hiding something more.

The team was led to another tunnel that was different than the one they had entered through. With the father saying one last goodbye, the team was left with the two girls. They snuck the two girls out through the tunnel and out of the city.

The two girls were still blubbering, as the team treaded across the Land of Gems. The team placed their forehead protectors back on and discarded their disguises as they traveled through the night. Neji kept on a look out for any tails, having felt the same odd urgency as Saryie from the clan leader's voice.

The youngest girl, Nali, was traveling on Sakura's back as the oldest, Shui, was being carried on Michi's back. They ran for the longest time, wanting to put as much distance from the city as possible during the night. Michi soon was left complaining about the lack of rest he had gotten as the sun hit mid-day.

Neji finally allowed them to stop after perceiving no threat in the immediate area. Michi was ecstatic to have some down time. He dropped the girl, Shui, down before he too fell down to the ground to rest.

Shui screamed at the sudden toss.

"I'M NOT A SACK OF POTATOES, you know!" Shui ranted, angered in a shrill voice.

"You sure feel like one," Michi muttered, the side of his face pressed against the ground as he sighed.

Shui huffed annoyed as she was joined by her sister Nali who was let down gently from Sakura's back. Nali seemed to be taking this trip the hardest as her lip kept quivering as she leaned on her sister for support.

"Take a short break everyone, we'll be moving again shortly," Neji stated, still on guard.

"Are you kidding me? We been traveling for 10 hours straight. My body is sore," Shui complained, with a preteen attitude.

"Imagine how I feel," Michi once again muttered.

"You're a ninja, it's expected. I'm an heiress. I deserve better treatment," Shui argued as she rubbed her sister's arm in comfort who didn't even look up at anyone.

"My apologies, but it's of great importance we deliver you to the Land of Stones as quickly as possible," Neji spoke, unfazed.

"What's so safe about the Land of Stones?! Huh?! Once you're done escorting us there, who's not to say we won't be attacked there?" Shui spoke, with an attitude.

"You'll be securely placed in the Land of Stone's protection. They're aware of your pending arrival," Neji answered.

"It's all politics. You can't guarantee our safety," Shui remarked as she looked away from them.

"You sound mighty bitter."

Shui head snapped up to Saryie's figure quickly, anger in her eyes.

"How would you like being removed from your homeland and being taken someplace else? All because of politics and bureaucracy and fam-" Shui cut herself off, anger spilling out of her, looking away. Her sister, Nali, wept harder beside her.

"I may not know about all the politics and stuff," Saryie started as she squatted down by the two girls. "But I do know what it's like to be kicked out of a place you call home," Saryie stated softly.

Shui glanced back at Saryie, her eyes wide as Saryie smiled at her.

"At least you have some family with you. Its more than what I got. You two have each other to get through this," Saryie spoke softly, compassionate.

Shui gulped, her eyes softening as she held on to her sister tighter. Saryie stood up soon after, noticing Sai and Sakura's curious eyes on her. Saryie didn't have to addressed their wondering eyes as Neji cleared his throat and said they should get going. Michi whined but there was no more argument from the girls.

They took off soon after replenishing, unbeknownst to them that a team was soon after their trail. Saryie noticed that Nali had finally stopped quivering on Sakura's back and that Nali was twiddling with a pendant around her neck.

"That's very pretty. Did your father give you that?" Saryie spoke softly.

Nali nodded her head and hid her face behind her hair.

"He said it was to keep the bad dreams away," Nali commented, quietly.

Saryie smiled, but her smile faltered when Neji called for their attention as they were running.

"Looks like we have company," Neji commented, his byakugan activated.

Nali quivered again and squeezed Sakura tighter as Shui's eyes widened and froze. Saryie immediately became focused as Neji listed specific instructions on what they were going to do.

It came as Neji predicted. The enemy split amongst the trees and weapons were sent flying towards them. Neji deflected most of the kunai with rotation as the team stopped behind Michi's reptilian armor that had expanded from his skin.

Michi's reptilian armor retreated as the assault of weapons stopped. Neji looked head on, being the only one able to see the enemy ninja through the trees where they were hiding.

"Great counter… you must of saw that coming from a mile away, but that's expected from a byakugan user," a male's voice mocked from the tree.

Everyone's guard was up. Shui and Nali were guarded in a circle. Michi was in front, Sai in the back while Saryie and Sakura covered the sides. Saryie was itching for a fight but knew she had to stick with the plan if they were to get these two girls to safety. She wasn't going to let anyone passed her, plus they didn't know who they were dealing with yet.

"Give up the heiresses and we'll be out of your hair," a feminine voice called out with a snicker.

"If we refuse?" Neji questioned, his voice even, eyes narrowed.

"Then you'll all die," the woman's voice shrilled as the enemies made their assault.

"Sakura, now!" Neji bellowed as another round of weapons were fired.

Neji blocked with rotation as two enemy ninja fled to opposite sides to counter attack the protective circle. All the enemy ninja were thrown back at the force of Sakura's fist hitting the ground. The ground shattered and it uplifted the earth, making trees fall and stopping the two enemy ninja that went to attack. It even stopped the weapons being thrown as the enemy had to move from fallen branches.

At the same time Sakura's fist hit the Earth, Sai had drawn up a bird. He bought it to life and not soon after he took flight accompanied by Michi and the two girls. They disappeared into the sky as Michi did his camouflage jutsu.

"Where did they go?" a man called out as he emerged from the rubble of the forest.

Before he could get an answer, Saryie surprised him with a punch to the face, sending him closer to the weapon user that was fighting Neji.

"I'd pay attention to me" Saryie remarked, anger clearly drawn on her face.

The man she had punched was of average build. He had a pointy beard and dark colored skin. His dark hair was sticking up over his head in zigzags. He wore a black vest and pants but a dark green shirt with a sword strapped to his back. He had a snarky white smile as he got up from the blow to his face. It was obvious he didn't find Saryie very threatening.

The weapon user that Neji was fighting was a female; she gave a look to her companion. The man with the sword blocked her form as the female closed her eyes. She had a beanie cap on with one greenish bang hanging down into her eyes. Her face was pointy and her body was slim. Her outfit was decorated in pouches with some scrolls, a chain was wrapped around her torso from her shoulder.

Sakura made quick work of the third shinobi, trying to land a blow to him. He moved fast and was working his way back to his teammates. He had long black hair and wore an oversized grey coat and blue shorts.

"I've found them," the female stated to her team member that was protecting her. The man with the sword nodded.

The man made a break for it, but Saryie was right in his path. She went to swing but was blocked.

Neji kept a steady eye on the woman as she went to escape. She threw kunai in her attempt to run, but Neji block them.

The other ninja that Sakura was fighting kept dodging her attacks and taunted her.

Then amongst the kunai that all three of the enemy ninja threw, there were three paper bomb explosions. The three enemy ninja jumped in the air out of the way of the explosion thinking they got the best of the leaf shinobi.

They soon found out they were wrong as Neji, Saryie, and Sakura flew out of the smoke and attacked them. The three enemy ninja landed on the ground in a heap as the leaf shinobi landed gracefully. They were shocked to find substitutions in the place of the enemy ninja.

"Substitution?" Sakura called out surprised.

Neji growled lowly as he focused with his byakugan to find them. "Damn. They're headed right for Michi and Sai," Neji stated. "Let's go."

The three of them raced after the enemy ninja.

"How can they find them so easily?" Saryie asked annoyed that they been fooled.

"They might have a sensory ninja on their team," Neji theorized

"That's most probable. They must have someone that can detect chakra networks," Sakura mentioned.

"My best guess it was that female. Remember how she was being protected by her team member? She must have been searching for them," Neji stated, keeping his eyes on the targets, leading the team.

"Yea that's right, that must have also been when they plan to use substitutions when they all tried to make a break for it," Saryie spoke, thoughtful.

"They wanted us distracted," Neji spoke.

"How close are they to Michi and Sai?" Saryie asked.

"They're gaining on them," Neji stated.

"We need to move faster then," Saryie stated determined as she pushed herself faster.

Neji and Sakura followed her speed, hoping to get them in time.

* * *

 **Well, that's interesting no? what is going to happen? Will they make it in time? You'll find out soon enough. Thank you for reading.**

 **Feel free to review, please.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. I do own Saryie, Michi and Azumi**


	10. Chapter 10

**Here's the second half of the mission. I hope you enjoy.**

* * *

 **Stirring Emotions**

Chapter 10

Sai could sense the oncoming threat. He scanned the area. He knew Michi, the two girls, and himself were invisible to the naked eye because of Michi's camouflage jutsu, but that didn't mean they couldn't be detected. Sai prepared himself.

"I sense a threat approaching. They must have gotten passed them," Sai informed Michi, monotone.

The two girls gasped. Nali huddling even closer to her sister, clutching the pendent tighter to her chest.

"Already?" Michi questioned shocked, his face grave. "What were they doing back there, somersaults," Michi muttered sarcastically as he glanced behind them.

Sai was questioning that as well. How did the enemy get pass Neji, Sakura, and Saryie so fast? He wondered if the enemy ninja were that skilled or was there a diversion. But whatever happened to them, he needed to focus on what he needed to do now.

Soon enough they saw the enemy approaching fast from the tree tops and Sai and Michi were ready for them.

"Fire style. Fire ball jutsu," the enemy with the sword called.

A gigantic fire ball approached the bird that Michi and Sai were on. Michi jumped from the bird first, holding the two girls at his sides as he descended to the ground. It broke his camouflage jutsu as they disembarked the bird. Sai descended after Michi, turning in mid leap to pull out his scroll and quickly scribble some lions.

"Super Beast Scroll."

The lions came alive from Sai's scroll and leapt after the enemy that was following right behind them to the ground. The lions delayed the enemy so that Michi and Sai could land safely.

The enemy ripped through the lions with good accuracy. The female having thrown shuriken and the ninja with sword swinging it widely at the inked lions and the last ninja cutting through the lions with a kunai.

As Sai landed, he reached for his blade at his back and turned around swiftly in time to block an attack from the sword wielder. The ninja with the sword, smirked at him, over confident.

"You're pretty good for how scrawny you look," the man mocked as he pushed his sword against Sai's blade harder.

The other two ninja were occupied with trying to find Michi who had already gone into camouflage mode with the two girls behind him by a tree. He also had his defensive reptilian armor up, covering himself and the girls.

"Where did they go?" the ninja with long hair asked, seemingly impatient.

The female once again closed her eyes to concentrate, focusing on trying to find the chakra networks of the three. She soon pointed at where the girls and Michi were at.

"They are right there," the female called as she threw a shuriken.

The shuriken deflected and bounced back due it hitting Michi's armor. Cautiously, the female approached Michi's barrier. She came up to it and tapped it, testing its strength. It felt solid like a rock.

Michi dispersed his camouflage jutsu, having been spotted and becoming visible to the enemy. For him to have his armor expanded and camouflage jutsu working at the same time, it took up too much of his chakra. There was no point to keeping up the camouflage jutsu and waste chakra, when Michi was sure that the enemy was now going to test the strength of his armor. He would need to save his chakra in order to keep his armor intact.

The female snickered and Sai took a look out of the corner of his eye, trying to calculate his next move. He was still engaged in holding the sword wielder back who cackled at Sai's seemingly helplessness. Sai kept a steady gaze back at his opponent.

"That's right chump, just keep looking at me," the sword wielder spoke as his teammates were busy studying Michi's armor.

"Looks like an Earth style jutsu," the female remarked at Michi's armor. "Cho."

The man with long hair named, Cho, responded, nodding. He came up to Michi's barrier as his hand began to surge. His chakra was turning into electricity in his hand. Michi cursed inwardly and braced himself. It just had to be his bad luck that the enemy had to have an electricity user that worked well against his Earth style jutsu.

"It's best to come out now, save us the trouble. We've come a long way and want back what the Yuan clan stole from us," the female spoke, dryly.

When they heard no response, Cho reached out his hand to attack Michi's barrier with a gust of electricity. Even with Michi bracing himself for the attack, it still took him a lot to hold the barrier up. It was weakening. The reptilian armor wouldn't hold for much longer as he tried to maintain an increased flow of chakra into the armor. The girls were holding each other, afraid, as they could hear and feel the electricity attacking the barrier. It made their hair stand on end in the dome. Nali didn't even look up, she had her face buried into her sister, Shui's, stomach.

Much to Michi's relief, as the armor was decaying, he heard the voice of Neji's as air rushed passed him.

"Air Palm."

A gust of chakra wind forced Cho and the female way from Michi as Neji and Saryie landed in front of Michi's decaying barrier. At the same time, the man with the sword backed away from Sai as Sakura's fist hit the spot where he stood.

"Took you long enough," Michi muttered, out of breath as his armor fully decayed.

"Don't worry, I'm here now. You can take a breather, looks like you need it," Saryie commented lightly, with a smirk.

"I wish, but maybe later I can," Michi muttered, tired.

Michi stood still protecting the two girls, a kunai out along with Saryie and Neji on either sides of them, watching their opponents who were gathering themselves up from Neji's attack.

"Whatever happens, keep them away from Michi at all cost," Neji ordered to Saryie, Sakura, and Sai, his byakugan narrowing in on Cho's form.

Sai and Sakura stood by each other, knowing that they were taking on the man with the sword who also wielded fire style jutsu.

Saryie was facing her opponent, locking eyes with the female. Saryie knew somewhat that this woman used a lot of weapons and appeared to be a sensory type ninja. Saryie knew she had to be careful. A weapons expert ninja could be just as dangerous as any other type of ninja, but Saryie had some experience fighting with weapon users such as Tenten and Azumi. Saryie got in her fighting stance, knowing she was mostly going to use taijutsu.

The female recovered from the initial attack, angry she didn't sense Neji, Saryie, and Sakura's approach. She saw her path to Michi blocked by Saryie as the byakugan user also blocked her teammate, Cho. She knew she had to finish off Saryie first in order to get to the heiresses.

"Woo finish with those two quickly, help Cho. I'll finish up this one soon," the female ordered, her mouth in a frown as she unlatched her chain from her body, it falling to the ground.

"No need to worry, Yuri," Woo, the sword wielder, retorted as he sized up Sakura and Sai, with a grin.

Soon everyone went into battle. Sai and Sakura worked together as they fought Woo, dodging his fire style jutsu and sword. Neji went after Cho using gentle fist, hoping to block Cho's chakra points, but Cho was excellent at evading. Neji also had to be careful with Cho's electrocuting touch.

Saryie went to attack Yuri, but Yuri kept Saryie at bay with many flying weapons. A barrage of kunai and shuriken thwarted Saryie's attempts to get close enough to comfortably clobber the enemy ninja.

Yuri snickered. "It doesn't matter how fast you are. You won't be able to evade my attacks for long."

Yuri did hand signs as her chain became alive. It spread tiny spikes amongst the length of the metal and then was after Saryie like a snake.

It followed after Saryie even as Saryie moved as fast a she could away from it, but it still came after her. Saryie threw shuriken at Yuri as she kept moving, to test the jutsu that Yuri had on the chain. The chain did not falter as Yuri blocked the weapons Saryie threw. Yuri threw more ninja stars as well. Saryie was able to avoid for a bit but had stopped moving just enough for the chain to catch up to her.

The chain had caught part of her shirt ripping it as she quickly moved away from it. Yuri laughed again as Saryie tried to analyze her options while constantly moving around the battlefield. She didn't know what the deal was with this spiked chain that was following her. Saryie could tell by the jutsu that Yuri was used to long distance fighting. Saryie knew she could beat her if she could get close enough.

"You're wasting time. Its best to give up now. My chain seeks out chakra. It won't stop until it wraps its way all around your body and kills you," Yuri taunted as she threw more weapons to trip up Saryie.

Saryie dodged with quick speed, her mind racing. Saryie began making her way closer to Yuri, a plan forming in her head. The chain followed her closely. Yuri tried to block Saryie's advance with more shuriken, but Saryie jumped up in the air avoiding the flying blades.

"Big mistake," Yuri remarked, smirking as the chain latched onto Saryie's arm

"Maybe for you," Saryie retorted.

The chain began wrapping up Saryie's arm, piercing her skin drawing blood. Saryie grabbed hold of the chain and pulled it towards her. It gave her enough momentum by sending her towards Yuri.

Yuri was shocked and too slow to react as Saryie landed a punch in Yuri's face. Saryie went after her not giving Yuri a chance to recover, dragging along the chain with her. Saryie soon wrapped the chain around Yuri's neck, slicing her neck and choking the air out of her.

Once Yuri was dead, the chain jutsu broke and it fell from Saryie's arm. Saryie's arm was bloody from the tiny spikes on the chain, but Saryie felt exhilarated at winning. Her attention soon snapped to her teammates, seeing that Michi and the girls were still safe.

"Saryie! We could use your water jutsu," Sakura called, her eyes trained on Woo.

Saryie ran over to Sai and Sakura, ready to help.

"Your arm," Sakura commented, stunted for a moment.

"It's fine, I'll be fine," Saryie stated, her eyes locked on her new opponent.

Sai's eyes raked over Saryie's form and over her arm injury, his face blank. Blood was dripping off of Saryie's arm, hitting the ground, but she paid no mind to it. His attention was drawn back to Woo when Woo began talking.

"Impressive, never seen someone defeat Yuri before, but then again no one was stupid enough to grab that chain," Woo taunted, seemly unaffected at Yuri's death.

"Sakura, Sai, get those two girls to safety. I can handle him," Saryie stated, determined, her eyes narrowed, not looking at them. Her eyes were only on Woo.

"Are you sure?" Sakura asked, unsure.

"Go. Our mission is to get them to safety," Saryie spoke as she reached into her pouch at her hip. "Besides I'm just another Leaf shinobi," Saryie stated, smirking.

Saryie grabbed two seemingly ordinary looking sticks out of her pack. They were light blue in color and only six inches long and an inch in diameter. The pair of sticks had a pair of small holes on the top of them.

Sakura and Sai hesitated for a moment unsure as Saryie called out to Woo.

"What do you people even want?" Saryie questioned, unfazed.

"Oh you mean besides vengeance? The Yuan clan has had this coming for a long time. Ever since they stole the Stone of Vigor. Now you look like a pretty smart girl, so I think you should back down and hand the two girls over. Otherwise you might get hurt," Woo commented, laughing

"We'll see who gets hurt," Saryie retorted, getting angry. "Both of you go," Saryie shouted at Sai and Sakura.

"Your funeral," Woo remarked, with a shrug.

"Water Style, Twin Water Blades."

Sai and Sakura didn't hesitate this time as they headed over to Michi.

Saryie had exerted chakra into her palms. The chakra charged her sticks and formed a blade of her chakra nature. It shaped water into a sharp blade that was continuously moving and flowing.

Woo smirked as he swung his sword proudly, unimpressed with Saryie's weapons. Saryie soon went after him, angered at him for underestimating her. They began a tangled battle of swords, neither of them handling a blow.

Sai quickly drew a bird, and performed hand signs bringing it to life when they reached Michi. Sai noticed too how Neji was still in heated battle with Cho. Sakura helped Michi get the two girl on to the bird as Sai's eyes went back to Saryie's battle. Something unnerved him when she said she was just another leaf shinobi. He knew those were his words he spoke to her.

Sakura tried to calm Nali, who was curled up in a ball, lightly crying, onto the bird as Michi helped Shui on to the bird. When both Sakura and Michi were aboard the bird they called for Sai's attention.

Woo in the midst of his fighting with Saryie, saw that her team was about escape. When Woo had the chance, he made a clone of himself before once again colliding with Saryie's water blades. Saryie, surprised, saw Woo's clone and knew what was about to happen and quickly tried to think on her feet.

"Fire Style, Fire Ball jutsu," Woo' clone called as he began to blow a fire ball from his mouth at the bird her team was trying to escape on.

Saryie immediately parted from her combat with Woo, leaving a water clone in her place that was created from the water in the air. With her taijutsu speed, she ran in front of the path of the fire ball as she performed hand signs.

"Water Style. Water Blast jutsu".

Saryie expelled the water from her mouth extinguishing the flames at the last second, but the fire ball was so close that a flame nicked her thigh. Saryie fell, finding it hard to stand with the burn on her leg and the lack of chakra in her body.

Sai, Sakura, and Michi had already disembarked into the sky with the two girls, but their eyes were averted to the ground. Upon seeing Woo slash through the water clone of Saryie and the real Saryie on the ground exhausted, Sai made a calculative decision.

Sai jumped from the bird he drew, pulling out his scroll and scribbling quickly.

"Super Beast Scroll."

Lions and others emerged from the scroll as they leapt after the real Woo. Woo's clone was making a quick attempt to attack Saryie while she was down. Sai landed in time, slicing through the clone of Woo.

Woo made another fire ball, destroying the lions. He smirked when he got a clear line of sight of Sai blocking Saryie. Woo went to charge, but realized he couldn't move his feet.

When Woo looked down, he noticed the drawing of snakes holding him in place. Woo was about to cut the snakes with his sword when two lions grabbed him arms with their teeth. Woo cried out in pain and within a flash Sai was there.

Sai ended him, quickly, before calling off his jutsu. When Sai turned back to Saryie, Neji was there. Neji had just finished off his opponent, Cho, as well and had came to see the damage done to Saryie.

"I'll be fine. I'm just tired," Saryie muttered to Neji as he looked at her leg wound.

"We'll let Sakura be the judge of that," Neji stated, calmly as he looked at Sai. "She can't stand. We'll need to fly to catch up with the others."

Sai nodded at the request drawing up a bird and bringing it to life. Neji picked Saryie up and placed her on the bird as they got on as well. They began flying after Sakura and Michi.

They found them soon and flew the rest of the way to the Land of Stones with Saryie resting on the way there. Neji perform remedial first aid as he bandaged Saryie's bleeding arm. Neji also made sure there were no more enemy ninja tailing them as the sun began to set.

The team had so many questions as to why the two girls were being targeted.

* * *

 **Done and done. Well this mission is almost wrapped up :D and Sai went to save Saryie. Ain't he sweet. Lul. Tune in next time to find out the full story of the mission.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. I only own Saryie, Michi, and Azumi.**


	11. Chapter 11

**I added more to this chapter than I initially wrote. Like I literally rewrote this chapter because I felt this mission needed more of a conclusion than I initially thought. So now I have a chapter 11 part A and chapter 11-part B. But it's okay though. Part b is what I'll turn into chapter 12 and rename the other chapters I have written. Hope you enjoy.**

 **I would appreciate if those who read this piece to give me feedback. I feel like an author writing to an invisible audience :(. Thanks.**

 **BTW I posted a new sketch of Saryie in action when she was fighting Yuri, if you guys wanna check that out. It's on my deviantart page.**

* * *

 **Stirring Emotions**

Chapter 11

Once Sai's birds got them to the Land of Stones, the team descended. It was at that time that Sakura was finally able to take a look at Saryie's wounds. The two girls seemed to be doing better, at least Shui was. Her eyes were concerned as she watched Sakura start to check on Saryie's burned thigh. Thankfully, Nali had stopped crying, but didn't watch as Sakura worked on the wound. The child was still holding on to the pendant around her neck and whimpered when Saryie made a hissing sound at the pain.

Michi was at Saryie's side, concern in his eyes for his teammate. He had seen her do some stupid stuff in the past that had got her hurt but it still affected him. He saw Saryie as one of his younger sisters that he needed to stand behind.

Sai and Neji were still standing. Neji stood over the two girls, his byakugan activated, his face serious. Sai stood off to the side at Saryie's feet. His face too was blank as his eyes watched Sakura's hands rip Saryie's shorts for better access to the wound and started to apply a healing jutsu.

Saryie tried not to voice her pain too much, but hisses could be heard from her mouth on occasion.

"Will she be okay?" Shui asked to Sakura.

"She'll be fine. I'm just cleaning the wound at the moment and then I will help generate new cells within the wound so it can heal faster," Sakura stated, focused.

"Don't worry kid, she's tough as nails," Michi spoke with a toothy smile at Shui.

"Yea, I had worse," Saryie claimed, looking at Shui with a confident smile.

Shui didn't say more, biting her lip.

"Those ninjas that had attacked us, they were after more than just your lives. They claimed the Yuan clan stole something from them. Do you know what they could possibly be after?" Neji asked, his tone calm.

Shui's eyes went to Neji and shook her head, but Nali's eyes averted Neji's and stared at the ground, shaking.

Saryie caught the slight movement of Nali and the hand that was still clutching her necklace.

"They called it the Stone of Vigor," Sai spoke, softly, his eyes too watching the girls.

Shui's eyes immediately widened. "That stone is just an old legend. It was lost 15 years ago after the Yuan succeed the Tuan clan," Shui answered, flabbergasted.

"Nali, will you show us what you're holding?" Saryie asked, bringing everyone's attention to Nali.

Nali's head snapped up in what looked to be fear. She bit her lip and shook her head extensively. Shui's attention focused on her sister's odd resistance.

"Nali…?" Shui questioned.

Nali almost started crying again.

"It's okay Nali, just show them what's in your hand," Shui spoke comfortingly.

Nali looked down and held out her hand and slowly showed the pendent that she had been clutching. Shui gasped.

"Is that…?" Shui hesitated.

"Papa gave it to me… He told me it would keep us safe. He said I couldn't tell you, that the magic wouldn't work if I showed you," Nali spoke in whimpers.

Shui slapped the stone out of Nali's hand immediately, anger rising up within her. "THAT'S THE STONE OF VIGOR, Nali. Papa didn't want you to tell me because he knew I would know what it was. It doesn't keep us safe! It paints a target on our back!" Shui exclaimed, making her sister scared.

"Shui, quit it; you're scaring her. She didn't know any better," Michi spoke firmly, feeling sympathetic.

Shui's breathing was heavy as the anger in her boiled. "I told you! I told you all it was only about politics. Our father didn't want us to be safe. He wanted the stone to be safe!"

"What's so special about the Stone of Vigor?" Neji questioned, keeping his composure.

Shui let out an exaggerating sigh. "The legend was the Stone of Vigor could give the ninja who possessed it with enormous amounts of chakra and strength. That there was a jutsu that could extract the power from the source of the stone. It was said the stone helped the Land of Gems establish itself and was a source of defense against intruders.

"There was a point when the main family was spilt between main members and lesser branches, ultimately the Yuan and the Tuan clans. It was 15 years ago where they battled for the throne in the Land of Gems. The Yuan clan succeed and the Tuan clan was supposedly exiled within the nation but there were rumors that the Tuan clan had been sneaking into the city," Shui spoke bitterly.

"Then those enemy ninjas must have been from the Tuan clan," Neji clarified, thoughtful.

"Yea, but how did they even know how to find us so quickly and how did they know that Nali had the stone in the first place?" Michi questioned.

"There was probably a spy amongst the palace guards or bribery," Sakura theorized, her glowing hand still hovering over Saryie's injury.

"If that were true, then it's possible that others might come looking for them," Neji theorized. "We should get them into custody with the Land of Stone's officers right away."

"How do you even know that is safe?!" Shui shouted.

"You have more of a chance within the Land of Stone's protection than you do sitting here whining about it," Neji spoke firmly, his eyes narrowed.

"Yea right, you don't care about our safety! You just care about completing the mission," Shui stated, bitterly.

"Yes that is our mission. To escort you and protect you until we get you two under the protection and custody of the Land of Stone ninja," Neji stated, evenly.

"What about the Stone of Vigor? What are we supposed to do with that?" Michi asked, looking up at Neji.

"It's not part of our concern. It's a matter between the Yuan and Tuan clans."

"Neji! We can't let any foreigners get their hands on that stone," Saryie spoke up, barely concentrating on the conversation.

"She's right. If it falls into the wrong hands, it is a threat to the Hidden Leaf Village," Sai defended, rationally.

Neji took a few moments to contemplate their alternatives. It didn't seem reasonable to let the stone stay with the two heiresses who had no way to protect it. It also seemed idiotic to pass along the weapon to their allies in the Land of Stone. The weapon could be easily turned against their village. Neji knew they could not take the weapon to secure it. If the Land of Gems found out, their ties would be cut and other nations would fight the village for it. There was no good option.

Neji sighed, in reluctance. "It is not a matter to be concerned with for this mission. There's nothing we can do," Neji stated.

Shui began a rant of how she was right; she stubbornly spoke about how no one cared for them. She spoke ill of her father and of her place of birth. The team let her rant for a bit as Sakura moved on to check Saryie's arm that had been wrapped in bandages.

Neji asked Sakura if they be able to depart soon and if Saryie can walk. Sakura advised that Saryie needed to take pressure off the wound that she shouldn't walk. Saryie claimed she could do it and tried to get up. It was easy to see the pain on her face at putting pressure on her injured leg.

Michi stepped up, offering to carry her. Neji disagreed, wanting Michi to rather keep close proximity to the girls to protect them with his jutsu. Neji instructed Sai and Saryie to take aerial surveillance as they continued their journey on foot to meet the Land of Stone ninjas.

It was up to Sai and Saryie to spot any irregularities along the journey. Neji wanted to be sure the team handed off the two heiresses to the right people.

The team got going soon after with Sai and Saryie taking to the sky and Shui disgustedly picking up the Stone of Vigor. It was her people's most treasured stone even though it was more of a burden than a gift. Neji led the team, walking briskly through the rocky terrain with Shui and Nali behind him close to Michi and Sakura taking the flank. The terrain was too hard to run through. The rocks could easily crumble, making it difficult to maneuver through.

Saryie and Sai kept their eyes opened for anything out of the ordinary. Their guard was up after their last encounter. The team was heading into a ravine of stones, knowing that the Hidden Stone Village's was up ahead.

Without warning, five ninjas in outfits that were similar to the ninjas they fought before, had attacked. Neji was able to block the sharp flying objects, aware that there were more ninja coming. Michi had activated his armor around his body, making sure the two girls stayed close to his side. Sakura was handling the flank, fighting off the ninja that came at her. She two made sure to stay at Michi's side.

"We have to help them!" Saryie exclaimed, shocked watching what was happening below.

Sai was already on it by drawing lions to unleash upon the enemy ninja and to give their teammates room to escape. The other ninja became aware of the flying bird in the sky as lions descended upon them. Saryie's eyes scanned the battlefield, feeling useless. That's when something caught her eye.

"Sakura! Michi! It's an ambush!" Saryie shouted, from the sky.

The announcement gave enough forewarning to Michi and Sakura as the cliff above their head exploded by paper bombs. Michi extended his armor around the girls as Sakura sent a fist full of chakra to her hand. The big boulder that would have crushed them crumbled into a million tiny pieces at Sakura's punch.

After the explosion, Neji had made his way from the enemy ninja to Sakura and Michi. The Neji's team retreated up the ravine, wanting to get out of the ditch and to the top of the cliffs. Saryie and Sai could see more ninja coming from up above. It was about 30 more enemy ninja from the Tuan clan. They were lying in wait for them. It was obvious with this amount of a set up that information about this mission was leaked.

"Get me down there," Saryie stated, angrily.

"You're unable to fight," Sai remarked, calm.

"I can still perform jutsu. Fly the bird down to the ravine," Saryie stated, looking at Sai determinedly.

Sai nodded, flying the bird down. Saryie began performing hand signs and summoning chakra to her hands.

Their team was almost to the top of the cliff with the Tuan ninjas following after them. Sai's bird cut some of the ninja off from following their team. Saryie then let out her jutsu on the unfortunate enemy ninjas.

"Summoning jutsu. Water style. Raging tsunami," Saryie called as rapid waters flooded the ravine.

The water washed the enemy ninja off the cliff and the raging waters spinning, pushing against the rocks. This left many of the enemy ninja to either drown, suffer blood force trauma, or to float downstream as the water slowly calmed.

Saryie was able to take out at least 15 enemy ninja leaving 15 more to deal with. Sai took to the sky again to catch up with Neji and their team. They were holding their own against 5 ninjas. The other 10 still fast approaching.

Sai drew up more lions hoping to slow the enemy ninja down. However, the enemy ninja after slicing through some of the lions drew their attention to Sai and Saryie.

The enemy began throwing kunai and shuriken. One ninja began sending fire balls at them. Sai was able to dodge the flying weapons pretty easily on his bird.

Saryie was using water jutsu against the flaming balls of fire, but had to be careful not to get any water jutsu on Sai's bird.

Another round of kunai was thrown but this time much to Sai, and Saryie's surprise, there were paper bombs tied to them. The weapons were too close to avoid as they exploded. Sai's bird dispersed within the explosion, but Sai had enough time to grab Saryie from the bird and away from the bombs.

Their fall to the earth upon the cliff was short enough to avoid serious injury. Sai and Saryie landed together on the ground, with Sai's arm around Saryie's waist, having absorb most of the impact.

Sai and Saryie sat up slowly, knowing the enemy would gain on their vulnerability. Saryie winced at her leg that was burned as it started bleeding again and at the pain of landing roughly. Saryie looked to Sai, he seemed roughed up as well but not badly as she was.

Sai was focused on the approaching enemies, grabbing at the blade on his back as he slowly stood up. Saryie saw that Neji, Michi, and Sakura were boxed in. Saryie wanted to help but she could barely stand.

Before any ninja could touch Sai, the enemies were thrown back as the Hidden Stone Village ninjas came to the rescue. Saryie sighed in relief as the stone ninja worked with the Leaf ninja against the Tuan enemies.

The ten stone ninja along with the four able-bodied leaf ninja made quick work of the remaining ten Tuan ninjas. When it was all over, Sai returned to Saryie. He picked her up and brought her to Sakura who was with the heiresses, Michi, and Neji. The stone ninja and Neji were talking.

It turned out that the stone ninja were the officers in charge of keeping the heiresses safe within the Land of Stones until the Land of Gems could settle once again.

The stone ninja then led and escorted the leaf ninja to the village once they were ready to depart.

* * *

 **Wow. I definitely like this better than what I originally had. The team will find out more about the mission once they get to the village. I hope you enjoyed. Next chapter will have more Sai and Saryie bonding and a little more about who Saryie is.**

 **Please review!**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. I do own Saryie, Michi, and Azumi.**


	12. Chapter 12

**Hello, hello. This was originally the chapter 11 but now I made it chapter 12. I hope you enjoy this bit. It's kind of sad kind of happy. Let me know what you think!**

* * *

 **Stirring Emotions**

Chapter 12

It was a long journey back home. The team had completed their mission successfully. They got Shui and Nali under new protection.

The team was confident that the two heiresses would remain safe in the village. The stone ninja that came to save the team had been assigned the case of relocating and guarding the two heiresses by the Razikage.

The two girls were going to be fine. Nali hadn't really relaxed though, even after the ordeal was all done. Shui seemed resigned to her new life, even though she didn't like it. She was being strong for both herself and her sister.

The team had rested for a day when they had safely arrived in the village. The stone ninja generously offered the leaf ninja a stay in the building they were going to be keep Nali and Shui in for a while. It was then that Sakura could take another look at Saryie's injuries.

The marks on Saryie's arm were ragged, some were small holes while most were long cuts and others were deeper that would scar. The cuts on Saryie's hand were numerous. Sakura did her best to heal Saryie so that the wounds wouldn't get infected and to stop the bleeding.

When Sakura looked at Saryie's thigh, it was a different story. It was tender to touch and caused Saryie a lot of pain. The skin would be scarred as well. It hurt Saryie to move her leg, Sakura recommended her bed rest for a while until Saryie's skin could heal properly and not get infected. Sakura could only do so much for burnt skin. Michi checked on Saryie frequently, often joking with her and teasing her actions.

It was when the team was settled in that there was a serious discussion about the unexpected obstacles of their mission. The stone ninja lacked surprise when Neji mentioned the Stone of Vigor and the attack on the Yuan clan from the Tuan clan. It was clear the stone ninja knew something that his team didn't.

It was revealed that the stone ninja had been informed of the plot of the Tuan clan to recapture the Land of Gems and to eliminate the bloodline of the Yuan clan. It was the Yuan clan leader's idea to send his daughters away. However, in news unbeknownst to them all, the Yuan leader sent his daughters with the Stone of Vigor and let the information slip.

Shui and Nali's father wanted to lead the Tuan family into a trap. It gathered all the Tuan family that was hiding in the undergrounds of the city to resurface and pursue his daughters for the Stone of Vigor. The Yuan leader wanted to lead the Tuan family outside the city walls for the stone ninja to ambush.

Stone ninja clarified they were not informed of this ambush until earlier that morning by the Razikage who received the information from the Yuan leader. Upon hearing the news, Shui shook with anger at her father and threw the stone of vigor across the room. Nali was in utter shock. The team was taken aback as well.

That was when the stone ninja also informed them that the Stone of Vigor the girls had been carrying was a fake. That the real one was still lost but that their father had made an identical looking one.

This mission was essentially a tactic to bait the enemy out of the city. Saryie felt sickened at the thought of a father using his children as bait even though the safety of the city was at stake. It was a hard bit of information to swallow. Everyone's face was grave at the news.

The stone ninja explained that once the Land of Gems was stable again, per request of the Yuan leader, the girls could return to their native land. Shui immediately swore she would never go back and would never forgive her father. Nali started crying and there wasn't much the team could do about the reality of the situation. Their mission was complete. The two girls were safe and would remain safe for the time being.

When morning came and it was time to depart, Michi took it on himself to carry Saryie back home. The team rested during the night and would travel during the day. At night was when Sakura would check on Saryie's wounds. No one was too pleased about the success of the mission after finding out the glum reality of it. Sai seemed also to be more quiet than usual. He kept a sly eye on Saryie and her behavior over the next few days.

When they finally arrived back in Konoha, Michi was relieved, releasing his hold on Saryie's legs.

"Finally we're home, I can relax. Now get off of me," Michi spoke, happily and relieved.

"Sheesh, no one made you carry me. You act like I weigh a ton," Saryie commented, releasing her grip from around Michi's shoulders.

She put more weight on her uninjured leg, as she stood. She seemed to be in good spirits and back to her old self.

"I carried you for five days and I got you home, my job is done," Michi stated, nonchalantly, rubbing his neck as he stretched his sore shoulders.

"What a gentleman," Saryie mocked, sticking out her tongue at Michi playfully.

"Hey I need serious rest, I know you can make it home from here, you're not that crippled," Michi spoke as he began to make his exit, waving his hand as he left.

"Yes, it be best if we can get you home to rest properly, Saryie. I can check on your injuries and replace your bandages once we get there," Sakura stated, professionally.

Saryie nodded in acceptance, not wanting to argue. She was pretty sure she could rewrap and check on her injuries herself, but knew it would be best if Sakura took a look at them.

"I'll help escort you home," Sai stated, drawing Saryie's attention as well as surprise from Sakura.

His face was blank as he stepped closer to Saryie. Both of the girls tried to analyze him, but couldn't decipher much. Saryie smiled lightly at him, welcoming his offer.

"I'll report to Lady Tsunade about the mission," Neji stated as he made his exit to the Hokage tower.

Sai stepped forward to Saryie and grabbed her arm, putting it around his shoulder as he placed his arm around her body. Saryie blushed slightly at the closeness, she didn't really know why. He helped her walk as she guided them to her apartment.

Once inside Saryie's apartment, Sai helped Saryie over to her bed. When Saryie was laying down, Sakura began unwrapping the bandages and checking the scar tissue of Saryie's arm. As Sakura was attending to Saryie, Sai had a look around Saryie's apartment.

It was clean for the most part. The wooden floor was dusty but that's expected after coming back from a week-long mission. There was a kunai scattered on the floor and disregarded clothes, but it was nothing compared to Naruto's. The little disarray just showed that sometimes Saryie could be lazy, but often tried to pick up after herself.

Sai noticed photos along Saryie's dresser. One was of her team in their genin days. She looked young back then and confident as she stood in front of her sensei. Michi was on the ground off to the side of their sensei, he had smiled for the camera, looking quite immature. Saryie's third teammate that Sai had not had the pleasure of meeting was on the other side of their sensei, turned slightly away from the camera. She seemed to be standoffish and not pleased.

Sai looked at the other two pictures on her dresser. The other one was of Saryie and Rock Lee. Rock Lee doing his signature pose with his thumb up and smiling as Saryie was showing off her muscles sticking out her tongue. The picture seemed to be a little over a year old.

The last picture was of a man and a woman with a very young girl and boy. The young girl resembled Saryie. She looked to be 6 or 7 years old. Saryie's hair was much shorter then and she did have that signature braid in her hair which is what made Sai suspect it was Saryie.

Saryie was wearing civilian clothes in the picture, that were slightly torn. Saryie's parents, or who Sai assumed they were, looked to be farmers. The man had light gray hair, with a sharp nose and dark eyes. The woman had Saryie's hair color and brown eyes. The woman's face was round and her hair hung slightly in her face.

Sai's eyes next focused on the little boy in the picture. He looked to be about 3 years old. He had darker brown hair than Saryie. It was spiked up in one direction. He had black eyes like his father and a sharp nose. Sai stared at that photo for a long while.

Sakura soon finished with Saryie, bandaging up the wounds. She ordered Saryie to bed rest for a few days before Saryie could go out and train again. Saryie complained about that but Sakura ignored her. Sakura left some pain relievers and ointment for the burn on Saryie's nightstand before departing, after saying her goodbyes.

Once Sakura had left, Saryie's focus came back to Sai. His back was to her and was looking at her dresser. He turned his head slightly, one eye peering over his shoulder at her on the bed, his face rather solemn.

"You have a brother?" Sai asked, softly.

"Yes," Saryie answered, cranking her head to the side to get a look at what Sai was looking at. She noticed her old family photo and smiled softly. "His name is Nao. He's twelve years old now compared to that picture," Saryie continued.

Sai turned back to gaze upon the photo. There was a silence that passed between them as Saryie tried to analyze Sai. However, there wasn't much to analyze when someone's back is all the person can see, but Saryie had a feeling there was a reason to the question.

"Do you have a brother, Sai?" Saryie asked, cautiously, her smile fading as she became serious.

Sai looked at her slowly before answering.

"Yes, but he is gone now," Sai responded, evenly before turning towards her.

He approached her bed, taking a seat at the foot of it. His body slightly angled towards her.

"I'm so sorry," Saryie mentioned, empathically. "Do you miss him?"

"No…" Sai answered hesitantly, "I have a hard time recalling what he was like, actually. When I was placed on Kakashi's team and met Naruto, I didn't understand the bond that he and Sakura felt towards Sasuke. I still don't understand at times, but the way Naruto pursued after his bond, reminded me faintly of a bond I use to share with my brother. I'm not sure if I understand what it means to have a bond but I have been exploring the idea of them even though I'm not very good at making them," Sai stated, smoothly, completely opened.

"Well you already have a couple of bonds started, you just have to work on them," Saryie commented, optimistically, smiling at Sai.

Sai looked at her, hoping she would elaborate.

"Naruto and Sakura are your teammates. You already share a bond with them. They're becoming part of your memories, part of your story. They're your friends, they'll help you figure out what a bond is," Saryie said, optimistically, then added slyly, "and if you're still not sure, you can ask me. I'll be your friend." Saryie blushed slightly at her own comment.

Sai stayed silent for a moment, his eyes following back to the picture of Saryie's family on the dresser.

"What happened to your bond with your family?" Sai asked, bluntly as he turned back to her.

Saryie's chirpiness dimmed, her eyes grave as she looked back at Sai.

"They kicked me out of the house when I became a ninja. They're farmers. They didn't agree with the ninja way so they didn't want my lifestyle to influence my brother's," Saryie answered, honestly.

"You don't see them often then?" Sai questioned.

"Only sometimes, I like to help them out when I can. Farmers only make so much money and have lots to do around the farm," Saryie replied, her mood less grim.

"What about Kakashi?"

"What about him?"

"You don't seem so fond of him," Sai stated.

"Because who would want to be related to the copycat ninja?" Saryie said loudly on impulse and took a heavy breath. "Sure, he's great, but I want to make a name for myself. I don't tell people my last name, because most people assume I'm the offspring of him. Plus, my parents blame what happened to his father, my great uncle, as a reason why the Hatake's shouldn't be ninja. That we're farmers and not meant for the ninja lifestyle," Saryie spoke, heatedly.

"I see," Sai stated, giving a false smile.

"Thanks… by the way, for stepping into battle and protecting me," Saryie spoke lowering her voice, sounding grateful.

"That's what teammates are for, is it not? Plus, I'm pretty sure it was the gentleman thing to do. I read it in a book somewhere that men need to save the damsels in distress," Sai stated, bluntly.

"I'M NOT A DAMSEL IN DISTRESS!" Saryie shouted quickly, irritated. "I could have figured something out. I didn't need you to save me," Saryie said as she stuck out her tongue at Sai. "Next time just stall the enemy, and I'll finish him off myself," Saryie stated stubbornly.

"You were foolish by causing harm to yourself with your first opponent. You lost a lot of chakra by grabbing that chain. You need to think ahead of the situation," Sai mentioned, nonchalantly.

Saryie grumbled for a bit. Sai stayed for a few more moments before getting up off of Saryie's bed. Saryie's attention snapped to him, her bad mood disappearing.

"I should go and unpack from the mission," Sai stated.

"Oh, okay," Saryie looked saddened but smiled. "Hey if you want, you can come visit me for the next few days. It won't be like I'll be busy or anything. Actually I'll be really bored since I'm not allowed to train any time soon. So feel free to stop by, okay?" Saryie said, invitingly.

Sai nodded with a fake smile. "I'll be sure to think about it. Hope you have a restful evening. Bye Saryie."

And with that he was gone and Saryie was left to her thoughts. She did hope Sai would come back tomorrow or some other day. She would definitely be bored in her apartment for the next couple of days. She liked Sai's company even though his vague behavior was sometimes unreadable. He was very blunt, sometimes to the point of being rude, but she could see he was trying to understand others and trying to understand feelings.

Saryie got up slowly from her bed, she needed a shower after a long mission like that. She stopped mid-step to look at the photo of her family for a long time. In the photo she was 7 at the time. She still remembers how much she had to bug her parents to let her join the academy. She didn't join until she was eight. Her parents let her join in the hopes of extinguishing her interest in becoming a ninja by having her fail miserably at it.

Saryie could still remember how much she wanted to prove her parents wrong, but she did struggle in her first two years at the academy as she tried to play catch up to all the other kids of her age. The only thing she was good at was taijutsu. It was hard for her to maintain chakra and control it. She had at one point almost given up at age 10. She was nowhere near mastering her chakra or even come close to figuring it out.

It wasn't until one fateful afternoon, when Kakashi had spotted her moping at the river. He awkwardly gave her a talk, not knowing how to relate to a young struggling ninja. He basically told her that her parents are right and that she would be better off as a farmer. She had yelled at him that she was going to be a ninja no matter what. Her anger helped fuel her chakra as Kakashi placed a piece of paper into her hand. The paper became damp on top of her palm. Kakashi then informed her of her water style chakra.

With new found determination, Saryie practiced and practiced till she was just as competent at ninjutsu as all the other kids her age. She was finally happy when she entered into a classroom with children her own age and that's where she first saw Naruto.

It didn't take much longer until she mastered a water clone jutsu. Then she worked on mastering other water style jutsu that Kakashi was willing to share with her after she bugged him alot. She kept training, working on both her water jutsu and taijutsu through the rest of the years in the academy until she graduated at age 13.

She then learned to split into a clone out of thin air from her body. It was one of her special jutsus that needed special concentration in order to activate her chakra points to convert the water in the air to take the place of her original form. She learned that jutsu all on her own and didn't learn how to do that until she was 14.

Even though Saryie was proud to be call herself a ninja, she wished her parents could see her the same way. She wished her parents could see her as strong and capable woman, but they see her as a fool for taking on a life of a ninja. They saw it as dangerous, gruesome, and cruel.

Saryie missed her little brother from time to time. He is so grown up compared to what he used to be, but he could be such a brat. He would side with mom and dad when he was little, since he knew no better. Nao would always bug her and try to degrade her for becoming a ninja. Now that he's gotten older, it seemed to have stopped. He hadn't taken on the life of a ninja like she had, but instead went into farming. Saryie wasn't too sure if he was happy about it though. Whenever she sees him, he usually asks about her missions.

Her mom and dad never wanted to hear about her missions, but her brother did. He seemed to enjoy her stories. Saryie wished she could talk to her brother more often, but it was usually not possible.

Saryie stopped dabbling in her thoughts, and made her way to her bathroom. Under the water of the shower, she hoped to wash the bad thoughts away as she looked forward to tomorrow.

* * *

 **WOOO more Sai and Saryie bonding. I like them together, but that is because I invented Saryie. Saryie had to struggle to get where she is today with the lack of support from her family. You'll learn more about Saryie's past in future chapters so stay tuned!**

 **Also there will be sketches of some of the pictures Sai see's on Saryie's dresser on my deviantart page, just fyi.**

 **I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please leave a review, if you have a comment.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. Only Saryie, Michi, and Azumi, since I invented them.**


	13. Chapter 13

**Here comes the drama.**

* * *

 **Stirring Emotions**

Chapter 13

Sai was stopping to pick up some takeout before heading over to Saryie's apartment for the third day in a row. He decided to take Saryie up on her offer. He usually brought over food and they would chat for an hour or two. Sai would only stay long enough that seemed polite but he didn't want to overstay his welcome. He still found it a little strange to hang out with someone at their house.

He wasn't use to it. He usually was use to spending time by himself, at his house, the park, the library, and other places… where he could be alone. He wasn't use to hanging out with other people besides his teammates on occasion. Naruto though was still working on perfecting his change in chakra nature and form to create his own jutsu. Sakura has also been slaving over making food pills that taste awful for Naruto. They were supposedly good for the body, but Sai didn't know how something so awful was supposed to be good.

Sai found spending time with Saryie made it easier for him to try and relate to people. Saryie was very open and happy individual. He didn't mind spending time with her. He actually looked forward to it which was new for him.

It was easy for Sai to talk to Saryie, she didn't get easily offended at his blunt nature. She was impulsive, but she was level-headed enough to analyze his demeanor and know that he wasn't trying to be insulting half the time. Plus, Saryie gave him plenty of opportunity to practice what he was learning from his self-help books about making friends.

Sai was ordering two takeout boxes when he ran into Sakura. Sakura was surprised to see Sai as he was exiting the noodle shop. She too was carrying a basket of freshly made food pills. No doubt on her way to check up on Naruto. Sakura had paused in greeting, spying the two takeout boxes in the plastic bag that Sai had in his hand.

"Two takeout boxes?" Sakura said out loud as she looked Sai in the eye with a questionable look.

"Yes, I'm on my way to Saryie's apartment," Sai stated, truthfully, his face expressionless.

"Oh," Sakura seemed contemplative and then smiled gently, "You know, I think you should ask Saryie on a date?"

"A date?" Sai asked, peculiarly.

"Yea, I think she would really like it. I know she would say yes," Sakura stated, still smiling.

"How do you know?" Sai questioned, intrigued.

"I can tell… when a girl likes someone," Sakura mentioned, hesitantly.

Sai stood there for a moment, quietly thinking. Sakura cleared her throat as the silence became awkward, she blushed slightly as she scratched her cheek.

"Well I better get going, I'm on my way to check on Naruto. See you later Sai," Sakura said, as she made her way passed Sai, waving a goodbye.

Sai watched Sakura depart for a moment, before he too headed off. What Sakura had suggested was running through his head. He didn't know how to date. He was pretty sure he would have to look it up in the library later. He also was wondering if Sakura was right, did Saryie possibly like him? It be hard for him to tell. He had a hard time enough figuring out if he was annoying someone. How would he know if he made someone happy? How would he know if someone liked being around him?

These thoughts floated in his head, keeping his mind occupied as he arrived at Saryie's apartment. Saryie was getting around a lot easier now on her leg as she answered the door. Saryie was itching to get out of her apartment and get back to training. She was tired on being on house rest.

Saryie welcomed Sai in happily, making small talk. Sai followed her to the kitchen as they sat at her small table. He handed her, her box of takeout. They both sat down and both started to eat the noodles with chop sticks.

Saryie noticed Sai was more quiet than usual, she knew something must be on his mind. It was only a matter of time before he said whatever was on his mind.

"Saryie, do you like anyone?" Sai asked, bluntly.

Saryie almost choked, but was able to swallow her noodles without them getting caught in her windpipe. She looked at Sai with an eyebrow raised, her face giving nothing away.

"That's an odd question," Saryie stated, evenly.

"It's a simple question," Sai responded, serious.

"You've never asked me about my feelings before," Saryie mentioned, her lips pursed.

"And that makes it odd?"

"Maybe," Saryie answered. "What are you feeling?"

"Confused for the most part," Sai responded.

"I make you feel confused?" Saryie questioned.

"Yes, but also other things I not sure how to describe," Sai stated, unfazed.

Saryie stared across at Sai for a long moment, before going back to eating her noodles and mumbled something unclear to Sai.

"What was that?" Sai asked.

"Does it matter that I like anyone?"

"I suppose not," Sai mentioned, contemplating.

The two continued eating and chatting about unrelated things. Even after they were finished eating, they chatted at the table for a good long while, until Sai decided it was time. He left to go check on Naruto's training as well as make a trip to the library to see what it says about feelings and dating.

Saryie spent the remainder of the day inside, lounging around her apartment, almost completely bored. She had a couple of books in her apartment, but she didn't care to read them. She was close to going stir-crazy if she were to stay in her apartment any longer to rest. If it wasn't for Sai visiting, she was sure, she would have gone crazy by now.

The wounds on her arm healed nicely, it didn't hurt anymore. However, they did leave nasty looking scars, Saryie wasn't sure if she liked the look of them very much. Her leg, was doing better as well. It didn't hurt as much to add pressure to it. The burn had left a scar as well, but wasn't as gruesome looking as the scars on her arm.

Saryie couldn't wait till she got back to training. Tomorrow, she could start fresh. She had wondered what Lee had been up to lately. She could use a good spar to get her body up and running again. Then she could work on her training requested by the Hokage.

It was approaching the evening, when Saryie was happy to hear someone rapping on her door. Saryie got quickly up off her bed, and nearly bolted to the door. She was dying for company; she was surprised to see Azumi at her door.

"Azumi?" Saryie questioned, "What are you doing here?"

"I'm here to deliever a message", Azumi stated as she took a glance at Saryie's bandaged arm and leg. "I see you were careless again."

"Was not! I had the situation under control! Ask Michi!" Saryie defended, with her arms crossed.

"I was just at Michi's. He had mentioned you were on bed rest," Azumi commented, her face dull. "May I come in?"

"Sure," Saryie agreed, leaving the door open as she headed to the counter in her kitchen to lean on.

Azumi closed the door behind her quietly as she entered into the kitchen, observing her surroundings. It wasn't the first time Azumi been over to Saryie's apartment; she had stopped by before in the past on occasion to deliver messages.

"You've had company," Azumi stated, her eyes drawing back to Saryie's.

"Yes. Sai's been over," Saryie answered.

"Hm, I don't know him," Azumi responded, indifferently, her eyes once again sweeping the apartment.

"How's your father?" Saryie asked, softly.

Azumi's eyes quickly snapped back to Saryie's, her face blank. "He's been fine," she answered shortly.

"So what was the message you had to deliever?" Saryie asked, knowing Azumi did not like talking about her home life.

"Iroha wants to see our progress on our training so far. He wants to test our defense in two days," Azumi stated, evenly.

"What? Already? We haven't even tried to tie in our jutsu together," Saryie mentioned, her face confused.

"That's precisely why I'm here. I want the team to meet tomorrow so we can try to coordinate our defenses," Azumi stopped short, overlooking Saryie's injury again. "That is… if you're well enough to train," Azumi mentioned.

"I will be ready enough! I'll be there. You can count on it," Saryie stated, determined.

"Great," Azumi spoke as she turned to make her leave.

"How did your mission go?" Saryie asked, openly, curious.

Azumi stopped as she answered. "Vaguely boring."

That was all that was said as Azumi took her leave. She exited Saryie's apartment, making her way home.

Saryie was left all alone in her apartment, leaving her bored once more. She wasn't surprised by Azumi's curt answers. Azumi wasn't good at expressing herself or at socializing. Azumi saw most conversations as unnecessary. She only made conversations when she deemed essential. Azumi liked the quiet, the calm. Arguing and bantering annoyed her. She avoided verbal conflicts.

Azumi wasn't also one to complained. She took what was given to her in life without argument. Azumi said it made life easier that way. That's why Azumi took each mission given to her seriously no matter how stupid it might seem or boring. Azumi got the job done and stuck to the rules of a ninja.

Saryie and Michi always wondered why Azumi was like that. It used to drove them crazy when they were genin. Saryie use to get in Azumi's face and try to start conflict, but Azumi always remained calmed. Iroha use to have to separate Saryie from Azumi.

It wasn't until Saryie discovered Azumi's home-life situation that Saryie could understand why Azumi was the way she was. It had taken awhile for Saryie and Michi to find out about Azumi's childhood, but once they found out Saryie didn't get annoyed as much with Azumi. Michi understood Azumi much more after finding out and let her be who she was.

Azumi saw them as teammates and nothing more. It was hard for Azumi to grow attachment; her life was set for her. Saryie couldn't understand how Azumi could live like that until one day she did understand. Saryie knew Azumi's childhood wasn't a happy and she couldn't blame Azumi for being closed-off.

Saryie soon let sleep consume her as her mind wandered to her genin days. Night time had approached and she couldn't wait for tomorrow.

* * *

 **Very short chapter but oooo what happened in Azumi's childhood, eh? Also Sai is getting very curious about these feelings Saryie has.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. Only Saryie, Michi, and Azumi**


	14. Chapter 14

**This chapter is cute don't worry. Well its cute to me. Hope you like. Also sorry in advance if this chapter has bad grammar or spelling mistakes. My editor quit on me. Anyway enjoy.**

* * *

 **Stirring Emotions**

Chapter 14

Saryie was happy to awake to the early morning sunshine from her window. She quickly got out of bed and got ready. She put on her usual outfit of black shorts and a blue shirt. She tied her hair up in a ponytail and put on her shoes. She was about to head out the door, grabbing an apple from her kitchen when she stopped at the sight of her hand.

Saryie placed the apple down and went to grab the white bandage role from on her dresser. She wrapped her scarred arm up from her hand to her elbow. When she was satisfied, she smirked. This would just be another addition to her wardrobe. She then continued her way out the door grabbing her apple and making her way to the training grounds.

She was on time, but this time it seemed, Michi was late. Azumi was leaning against the tree, a seemingly blank look on her face.

"You're going to have to go fetch Michi," Azumi mentioned, dryly.

"Ugh, he's not coming?" Saryie asked, annoyed.

"Not unless you go gather him. Yesterday when I told we had training, he said he would think about it and see how he feels tomorrow. I'm guessing he feels unmotivated today," Azumi explained, quietly as she pulled out a book to read.

Saryie sighed loudly, very annoyed as she left the training grounds and went straight to the Haruki compound that Michi's house was in.

When Saryie had approached the house, she could hear the commotion going on in the kitchen. Saryie knocked on the door, Miyu opened the door a few moments later and looked to be annoyed.

"Mom, it's just Michi's teammate!" Miyu commented, leaving the door wide open as she walked away.

Saryie entered as she heard Michi's mother yelling after Miyu. Saryie walked into the kitchen and was hit with the smell of food simmering on the stove. Saryie saw that Michi's mother was cleaning dishes in the sink and had her hands busy. Aoi was sitting at the table with a plate of food, eating happily with Michi's dad eating some grub as well.

"Saryie is here?!" Airi shouted as she ran into the room to hug Saryie.

Saryie hugged her back giving her a warm smile as Airi let go to grab a plate to serve herself.

"Airi I hoped you washed your hands after you got done catching the lizards outside," Michi's mom commented, concerned as she saw Airi began to serve herself.

"Oops I forgot," Airi said, absently as she left her dish by the pot to run to go wash her hands.

"Oh that child," Michi's mom muttered as her eyes glanced over at Saryie.

"Oh don't tell me, Saryie, Michi was supposed to meet you this morning?" Michi's mother asked, already half knowing the answer.

Saryie gave a meek grin. "Afraid so."

"Oh for the love of bacon!" Michi's mom cursed. "The lack of motivation that boy has, just astounds me," Michi's mother complained. "It must be one of those days."

"Yup, he told Azumi he might not feel up to training today," Saryie commented, offhandedly, smirking.

"That boy… MIYU! GO AWAKE UP YOUR BROTHER," Michi's mom shouted.

Miyu groaned from the room next door and shouted why she has to do everything around here.

"Just let him sleep! It's not like he's going to actually do anything productive once he's up," Miyu remarked, bitterly.

"Don't take that tone with me and do as I say. Miruko tell her," Michi's mom spoke directed at Michi's father.

"Listen to your mom, Miyu and go wake up your brother," Miruko responded, meekly.

"I can get him up!" Airi eagerly offered after reentering the room overhearing as she sped off without a reply.

"Miyu go help your sister get Michi up," Michi's mom commanded, firm.

Miyu scoffed as she followed after Airi down the hall out of the kitchen.

"I am so sorry about this, Saryie. It's always a little hectic in the mornings. I had no idea he was supposed to meet with you today. He can be so reluctant to do certain things. You know he gets this from his father," Michi's mom continued as she cleaned the dishes.

Saryie saw Miruko almost choke on his food.

"Come again, honey?" Miruko gave a bashful reply.

"You know exactly. Remember how I been asking you for three months now how I want new paint for the bedroom and you still haven't done it," Michi's mother commented, casually.

"That's a lot different than being reluctant to train. I never was late to training," Miruko calmly defended.

"Well he sure doesn't get it from me. When I grew up, we had no time to sit around and do nothing. It was work from dusk to dawn," Michi's mom spoke loudly.

Saryie felt inwardly amused as the banter between Michi's mom and dad continued as she waited for Michi. Michi soon came into the kitchen rubbing his eyes with Airi skipping happily in front of him and Miyu coming in solemnly after them.

"We rolled him out of bed!" Airi happily declared as she went back to her plate at the stove to serve herself.

"More like shoved," Miyu responded, she too grabbing breakfast.

"Why was it important for me to get up?" Michi spoke, sleepily as his eyes soon fell on Saryie. "Oh," Michi muttered.

"Oh?! Are you telling me you forgot!?" Saryie asked, incredulously.

"Yea," Michi hesitantly replied.

"He's lying," Miyu commented plainly as she sat down to eat.

"Not really... I was hoping it be optional if we trained today, I don't feel like it. Plus, I think it's important for you to rest your arm Saryie," Michi spoke, casually.

"It's all healed up, and I can prove it to you if you like," Saryie stated threateningly with a smirk.

"I think I'm good, but I'm glad you're feeling better. How about we celebrate by doing nothing," Michi stated turning away when Saryie went over grabbing Michi by his mesh shirt.

"We're leaving now. Let's go," Saryie demanded, starting to drag Michi away. "Thanks Ms. Haruki for getting Michi up. See you next time," Saryie said, happily.

"Wait, wait," Michi protested annoyed.

Saryie stopped for a moment, still with a hold on Michi's shirt.

"I gotta do my hair first," Michi joked and Saryie rolled her eyes as Michi lightly laughed.

Saryie started to drag him out of the house again, but he seriously protested this time, complaining he wanted his coat. Saryie almost had enough of this nonsense, if it weren't for Michi's mom throwing Michi's coat at him and waving a spoon in his face, they might have not ever left.

"So help me, if you do not go train this instant, I will make you eat a pig snout all this week, now go!" Michi's mother warned, angry.

Michi's face paled as he turned the opposite way, apologizing as he pushed Saryie to the exit. Michi's body relaxed as they exited the compound.

"Ugh you guys really couldn't give me one more day to relax," Michi whined.

"You been resting for four days now and I was the only one who was supposed to be resting! You were supposed to train on your own," Saryie commented, with the roll of her eyes.

"We both know that wouldn't happen," Michi claimed.

"It could, if someone tried to force feed you your least favorite foods," Saryie commented, eyes narrowed.

"Yup luckily for me, no one was around to do that until you showed up at my house, ruining my vacation," Michi droned.

"If you keep laying around, you're going to get all flabby," Saryie commented, bluntly.

"Kinda what happened to you over the last three days, huh?" Michi mentioned as he poked Saryie's side teasingly.

"Hey!" Saryie yelled as Michi laughed as ran ahead of her.

Saryie quickly followed him finding it easy to catch up to him. She punched him softly, as they made their way to the training grounds. It was obvious Azumi was annoyed with how long it took to fetch Michi, but immediately went to the task at hand.

They began practicing, trying to combine their jutsu somehow. They let their chakra flow into one another. Michi was the first to try to incorporate his jutsu by expanding his reptilian armor from his body. His armor didn't reach far and sometimes decayed as he tried to maintain a level of chakra flow into his armor. Azumi then tried to cast a genjutsu, testing her range. The genjutsu was simple enough, it was to appear as if they were invisible to any surrounding chakra networks. Saryie's jutsu wasn't completely necessary at this stage, but her main objective was so constantly maintained a flow of chakra into Michi's body so he wouldn't be trapped in Azumi's genjutsu so that way he could focus on his own.

They practiced almost until the evening. Michi wanting to quit the most when he was sure he was out of chakra. Azumi was running low on chakra too, because she kept trying to expand her genjutsu range over and over again. Their jutsu wasn't perfected yet. It was still going to take a lot more work, but it was enough for now to show Iroha tomorrow.

Michi was relieved when Azumi announced that training was done for the day. Saryie, on the other hand was disappointed. The training didn't take much out of her. To be honest, her part in the jutsu was pretty boring, but it was like Azumi had told her. She was the last defense. If someone were to break Azumi's genjutsu first and next tried to go after breaking Michi's armor it was up to Saryie to hopefully wipe away the enemy with water summoning jutsu.

However, for now; Saryie still had loads of energy to kill. When her teammates had left the training grounds, Saryie began working out. She had to stretch and test her leg out again slowly as well as her arm. She started by doing squats, then pushups and did some sprints. Then she worked on her endurance, punching and kicking a training log.

She trained for three hours by herself, working hard to get strong, once more. She was however surprised as a familiar voice caught her off guard.

"I thought you would be here," came Sai's cool tone as he approached her.

Saryie stopped what she was doing, and smiled lightly at him. "You guessed right," Saryie commented, cheerfully.

"Would you like a partner?" Sai offered, as he was in his ninja gear.

Saryie smirked. "I would love one."

They began sparring together. Lightly at first and then got more intense as Saryie's attacks kept being evaded easily by Sai, despite her speed she had on him. The two sparred for at least a good hour. Sai's evasion helped Saryie try to focus more on her attack strategy. She went to kick him and he caught her foot once again.

"I see your leg is doing better," Sai commented, straight faced, noticing all of Saryie's weight was on her leg that use to be injured.

Saryie smirked, thinking he was distracted and tried to land a punch with her bandaged fist.

Sai caught that attack too, to Saryie's dismay.

"It looks to be your arm is better too, yet you still have it wrapped up," Sai mentioned, observing.

Saryie backed away from him and he let her go.

"A lot of ninja wrap up their limbs," Saryie deflected.

Sai kept quiet as he analyzed her. It was true most ninja wrapped up their hands or feet in bandages, but Saryie only decided to keep the bandages on her left arm after it was injured. Saryie didn't have bandages on her left thigh, but Sai suppose she didn't need to, since her shorts covered the spot where her skin was burned. Sai did however note the bandages on her right leg at her ankle. She always had that ankle wrapped and he never questioned it before. Now he wondered why she wrapped up old injuries.

Saryie didn't give him much more time to contemplate as she charged him again. They sparred for a while as Saryie managed to keep a level head. She had almost landed a blow on Sai when her form of attack left an opening for Sai to hit her. He had pushed her just enough for her to lose her balance and make her fall back from the hit.

Saryie yelped not in pain, but in surprise as she hit the ground. She rubbed her sternum where Sai had pushed her with his palm. It wasn't the first time she landed on her butt with an opponent, it just usually happened with Lee or her sensei.

At that moment, Saryie's stomach began to rumble. Saryie laughed, her body at ease as she got up.

"Well it looks like a good time to call it quits. My belly is hungry. We been at it for a while anyway. Thanks for practicing with me. Would you like to come with me and get some food?" Saryie offered cheerfully.

"Sure," Sai easily agreed, his tone soft as he looked over Saryie's features.

They walked together and went to a sit-down restaurant. They ordered their food as Saryie made mild chit chat as they waited.

It wasn't until the food came and Saryie was eating that Sai asked an unexpected question.

"Is this a date?" Sai asked, monotone.

Saryie stuttered, almost choking. She was flabbergasted as her cheeks turned lightly pink in embarrassment.

"I had read in a book that when two people go out for an evening and share an activity together that it is considered a date," Sai continued, his eyes focused on Saryie.

Saryie finally recuperated and laughed. "No, this isn't a date. If it were Naruto here right now instead of me, would it still be considered a date?" Saryie retorted.

"I don't know. I suppose not," Sai mentioned, his eyes clouded in confusion.

"See, not a date," Saryie declared, feeling relief.

"Then what is a date?" Sai asked.

Saryie pursed her lips for a second as her eyes scanned Sai's face. "Well a date is when two people are interested in each other… romantically and they go share an activity together… and talk about themselves to see if they like each other or not," Saryie answered, composed.

Her definition left him pondering for a moment as he nibbled on his food.

"Why are you asking about dates anyway?" Saryie questioned, curious; finding it odd.

"Sakura had suggested I ask you out on a date. She is under the assumption that you like me," Sai stated, blandly.

Saryie's eyes widened but kept her mouth shut, making no comment about it.

"Should I take your silence as agreement?" Sai wondered, his eyes not wavering from Saryie's face.

Saryie kept a steady gaze.

"Were you going to?" Saryie asked.

"Was I going to what?"

"Ask me on a date," Saryie stated, trying hard not to show emotion.

"I had planned on it. Would you have accepted?" Sai questioned back.

Saryie leaned in across the table, looking Sai dead in the eye, her eyes slightly narrowed before answering.

"Yes," Saryie answered, slowly.

"Then would you like to go on a date with me tomorrow?" Sai asked, monotone.

"On one condition," Saryie claimed and had to smirk at Sai's confused face.

"These things have negotiations?" Sai asked, confused.

"Normally no," Saryie laughed lightly before she continued. "I don't want you to be fake with me," Saryie stated lightly, with a soft smile.

"Alright," Sai agreed easily as he too returned her smile with one of his.

After that was decided, they continued eating, making small chit chat. Saryie told Sai about her training tomorrow and that the date would have to happen tomorrow night. Sai agreed easily, not sure what kind of date he was going to take Saryie on yet. He might look in the books at the library once more or even try asking Sakura for help.

After all, it seemed Sakura was right about Saryie's interest in him. Sai would not have noticed otherwise. He did like Saryie's company, but the rest of what he was feeling was all new to him. Sai soon felt a little anxious about the date tomorrow. He wanted to make a good impression, even though he had no idea how a date is supposed to go.

Saryie helped distracted him from his thoughts as she talked about how she had to get Michi out of bed this morning to get him to train. Sai commented on how Michi sounded a lot like Shikamaru. Saryie agreed but said Michi was less of a genius and just really lazy as a shinobi.

The two finished their meal and as they were about to pay, Saryie teased Sai.

"Lesson number one, the men pay for the date," Saryie stated with a cheeky grin, laughing slightly as Sai's eyes slightly widened.

"Oh," Sai stated as he fished out more money to the waitress to pay for their meal.

"I thought you said this wasn't a date," Sai stated after the waitress left and they were in the process of leaving.

"It's not, but you might as well get accustomed to it," Saryie replied, giggly as they left the restaurant.

Sai watched Saryie amusedly as she laughed. Saryie grabbed his arm pulling him closer to her, shocking Sai.

"Thanks for the non-date. I'll see you tomorrow for the real one," Saryie spoke, playfully, smiling.

She soon let go of his hand and was off, fading into the distance as she made her way home. Sai was left in shock at the close contact. The feeling of warmth that had grabbed his hand was slowly fading and it made him wish she was back to hold his arm again. Sai wondered why he was feeling such things. Was this normal? He wasn't sure as he too headed home for the night.

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 **Awe well, they have a date! :D yay! Even though Sai not sure how a date goes or what to do. He's still sorting things out. Saryie left early because she was too giddy for her own good. She didn't want to scare off Sai.** **The next chapter leads up to the date. Be sure to stick around for that.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. I own Saryie, Michi, Azumi.**

 **Please Review**


	15. Chapter 15

**Well this is a little action packed. Ok the updates might come slower now. I got done writing chapter 18 yesterday and haven't started nineteen. Ii like to stay 3 chapters ahead of the chapter I post so there's not long breaks between updates. SO stay patient. School been a hassle recently. I don't get a lot of time to write. Thank you.**

* * *

 **Stirring Emotions**

Chapter 15

Iroha waited patiently for his students' arrival the next morning. He stood tall in the training grounds with his hands locked behind his back. Azumi had arrived first to the training grounds. It wasn't long until Saryie and Michi arrived shortly after.

Saryie was excited about today. She loved training in general, but she couldn't help be little less focus on training than on what would happen on her date with Sai that evening. Saryie, of course, did not tell her teammates about her date though. She wasn't the one to blurt out her social life. Plus, she was pretty sure she would make herself more nervous by talking about. Michi would make fun of her and Azumi wouldn't care. She needed support, not indifference.

But for now, Saryie needed to focus on this training as hard as it might be when her head is swirling with ideas. Iroha cleared his throat, gathering Team H's attention.

Iroha's eyes scanned over the three of them casually before speaking.

"Alright, we're here to test what you three have come up with so far for your jutsu. I have asked some of your fellow classmates from the academy to test your new jutsu. They are scattered somewhere near the training grounds. They'll be coming to find you shortly. Your goal is to protect this kunai," Iroha explained as he exhibited a kunai that he took out of his pouch before throwing it five feet away from Michi's position.

The team stared at the position of the dagger. Saryie's eyes scanned the trees, wondering where the other team was hiding as Iroha continued to talk.

"If the opposite team gets their hands on that kunai, you lose. This will help you three learn the weakness of your jutsu and ways to improve it," Iroha continued, monotone.

"Who is our opponent?" Azumi questioned.

"You'll find out," Iroha stated, staring evenly into Azumi's calm eyes. "Now, begin."

Iroha raised his arm before disappearing.

Immediately, Team H went on the defensive and got into position. Michi began expanding his reptilian armor large enough to cover 10 feet around the kunai as a protective barrier. Azumi began sensing the chakra networks within range of her genjutsu before casting it.

"There is three attackers heading our way," Azumi stated as she made hand signs.

Azumi concentrated on casting a genjutsu on the three attackers, hoping for them to lose their way and not notice the genjutsu she just put them under.

Saryie could feel the waves of the genjutsu invading her chakra network and quickly released it before placing a hand on Michi's shoulder to release his genjutsu as well. Saryie kept a steady flow of chakra into Michi's body as he had to not move when he cast his reptilian armor expansion.

The reptilian armor expansion jutsu needed a constant stream of chakra in order for it to hold and stay strong. The caster of the jutsu cannot move, if they do move the stream of chakra is likely to become uneven leading to weak points in the armor and it will start to decay.

Michi sat still, with a knee on the ground as he concentrated on his jutsu alone with his hands together. Saryie was trying to stay focus and felt her heart race in excitement as Azumi muttered a curse.

"They broke the genjutsu. Here they come," Azumi stated, and no sooner had she said that a new voice called out.

"Fang over fang."

Kiba and his dog, Akamaru, sprouted through the trees hitting Michi's barrier with fang over fang. Michi grunted in annoyance at the force of the attack. The armor remained intact as Saryie jumped away from Michi and over to block Kiba and Akamaru as they landed away from Michi's armor.

"Long time no see Kiba," Saryie remarked, with a smirk.

"Heh, I know. It's been ages almost 21 years in dog years," Kiba joked, still crouched to attack on all fours. "Did you miss my sexy self?"

"Nah, you still looked the same as your 13-year-old self," Saryie commented and laughed.

"Eh, don't worry you still smell like your funky 13-year-old self," Kiba sneered, tauntingly.

Saryie glared before lunging to attack with a kunai. She began fighting with the two.

Meanwhile, Azumi bit out a remark at Saryie and was left to guard Michi alone as she blocked an oncoming attack as Hinata flew out of the trees. Azumi wasn't the best at close combat, but she had plenty of practice dodging attacks of close combat fighters due to her training with her sensei and Saryie during her genin days. She was able to avoid Hinata's gentle fist the best she could.

The odds weren't looking good so far. Azumi knew there were three attackers and it seemed to be Team 8's squad. Which means Shino was still lurking somewhere in the trees. Soon enough, Azumi heard a shriek from Saryie. Saryie jumped on top of Michi's barrier away from Kiba as she was swatting the bugs off her skin, no doubt from Shino.

"Ugh they are eating my armor!" Michi complained, as he tried to reinforce his armor before the bugs could penetrate it completely.

Saryie saw what Michi was talking about as there were bugs on the barrier. Saryie quickly made hand signs as she jumped into the air away from the crawling bugs.

"Water style. Water blast jutsu!"

Saryie washed away all the bugs from the armor but as she was coming down, she witnessed Kiba and Akamaru do fang over fang again. It knocked Saryie away from Michi as Kiba's attack hit Michi's armor again. Saryie heard Azumi shout as she tried to block Shino's attack.

Saryie landed hard on the ground scarping her arm before getting up quickly and blocking Hinata from going after Azumi and Michi.

Azumi was able to block Shino's attack from hitting Michi which would have disrupted his barrier. Kiba was continuously hitting Michi's armor, trying to weaken it. It was testing Michi's endurance.

Azumi tried avoiding Shino's bugs near him, sending paralyzing needles his way. She knew Michi wouldn't last long if Kiba continued to attack.

Saryie was busy fighting Hinata, which she was best matched to fight. Saryie was use to fighting a byakugan user since that's who her sensei was.

It didn't mean Saryie could beat Hinata, but she be able to fight Hinata longer than most other ninja that were not use to fighting a Hyuga.

In the midst of the fight, Saryie was able to kick Hinata away and gave her just enough time to make hand signs. Saryie jumped up on Michi's armor again facing where Kiba was about to attack.

"Water Style. Water torrent jutsu."

Water as strong and big as a current spanned out of Saryie's hands hitting Kiba and Akamaru with enough force to send them back. However, before Saryie knew it, she was sent flying in another direction with a palm to the stomach.

"Gentle fist!"

Hinata had sent Saryie flying, and as Saryie landed, she was finding it hard to move. Hinata had blocked Saryie's chakra network at the core. Saryie tried to get up but as she did so she watched as Shino's bugs were summoned eating away at Michi's armor as Azumi was engaged in fighting Hinata once more.

Michi's armor soon lost hold as it began to decay. Michi quickly switched tactics letting the armor fall as he made hand signs and summoned regular sized lizards before blocking Shino's next attack. Michi's lizards took care of the bugs as Michi kept Shino occupied in close combat.

By then though, it was already too late as Saryie struggled to get up. She ran as fast as she could without her chakra, but Kiba beat her to it as Kiba grabbed the kunai Iroha had entrusted Team H to protect for this exercise. Saryie still tackled Kiba to the ground before he could celebrate though.

Kiba huffed at the impact and pushed at Saryie to get off of him.

"Ha, we won sucker!" Kiba gloated from underneath Saryie.

Iroha showed up then, disappointment written on his face. The others had stopped fighting, Team H having understood that they lost. Shino summoned all his bugs back to his body away from the hungry lizards. Shino glared at Michi while Michi smirked, smug.

"Well that ended quicker than I expected. Team 8 has beat Team H. You three let them slip through your defenses. That means there are still many kinks you'll have to work out in that jutsu," Iroha commented as Saryie pouted.

Saryie got off of Kiba as they turned their attention to Iroha as he talked. Hinata soon came over to Saryie's side unlocking the chakra points she had blocked and healing Saryie for her injuries while apologizing. Saryie waved off the apologies a little bummed that her team lost.

"Thank you Team 8, for your effort. You are free to go," Iroha acknowledged, waiting for them to leave.

"Any time you three want to get your butt kick again, give us a call!" Kiba announced proudly, after he got up, twirling the kunai on his finger. Akamaru followed right behind him, barking happily.

Hinata got up quietly, after healing Saryie, apologizing for Kiba's behavior. Saryie glared after Kiba, pouting. Shino walked calmly away, not saying a word as Hinata joined her two teammates.

Kiba however stopped and looked back at Saryie.

"Oh hey, and Saryie if you ever wanna exchange scents, give me a call as well," Kiba bit out with a laugh as he turned continuing to walk away, knowing it would make Saryie mad.

Saryie did get mad. She was about to go chase him down and hit him, but the context of the joke also turned her face red which she also hated. She hated when Kiba did that. Kiba used to have a little crush on her back in the academy… and Saryie well…. Saryie just saw him as a competitor.

She loved his puppy, Akamaru, back then… but that was really the only thing she really liked. Kiba was rowdy back in the academy. He did stupid things boys do when they like someone, which was pick on them. Kiba use to scare her with bugs or put leaves in her hair or place things on really high shelves so she couldn't reach them. Saryie just thought he liked to be a bully, it wasn't until they were twelve that she finally understood why he use to do that stuff when they were kids.

He had liked her; he had admitted to her which she was shocked to find out. Kiba thought it was so funny the way she got embarrassed about it that he continues to this day to embarrass her by saying stuff like that. Kiba no longer has feelings of interest towards Saryie anymore and Saryie was glad. Kiba was always seen as just another comrade and not a love interest.

Saryie's attention soon snapped back to Iroha as he called for her to pay attention. Iroha listed the things they did wrong as well as things they need to improve on. Saryie listened somewhat to the information Iroha was sprouting. He tended to drone on, sometimes.

Saryie noted how Michi seemed to not be listening either. He was exhausted from expending so much chakra. He was sitting on the floor resting. Azumi seemed to be the only one, actually listening as she stood still staring blankly at Iroha.

Iroha soon finished, saying they will have another test in a week or two and that they need to combine their efforts more. Iroha dismissed them, taking his leave and Michi sighed, relieved, as he fell back on the dirt. Azumi muttered something and took off.

Saryie got up from the dirt slowly, she needed a shower before she went out tonight with Sai. That thought sent butterflies to her stomach. She became nervous and jittery at that thought.

"Do you know what time it is?" Saryie questioned, carelessly.

Michi took a glance at the position of the sun in the sky before answer. "Maybe around 3-ish," Michi answered, before closing his eyes again. "I think I'mma lie here for another 2 hours."

"Ok, I'll see you sometime later," Saryie commented, offhandedly.

Michi caught the strange tone in her voice and peered over at her. "That's it? You normally comment on my laziness," Michi stated suspiciously.

"Well this time, I'm not," Saryie stated, her voice wavering.

"What's up with you? Do you have a hot date or something?" Michi questioned, rhetorically not actually serious.

"… No," Saryie spoke, shaking her head.

Michi had spent too many years living in a house with all girls to not know when a woman has something on her mind or when they are lying.

"Ha! You do, don't you?! Don't tell me your thinking of calling Kiba!" Michi stated, laughing a bit.

Saryie turned red and shouted at Michi.

"NO. I'm not calling Kiba. It none of your business! I'M GOING HOME!" Saryie spoke before fleeing away from Michi's laughter.

That was close, too close for Saryie. Having others know how she feels made Saryie feel embarrassed. She didn't like to talk about it, especially with Michi.

Saryie arrived home in no time and took a quick shower. She supposed she should dress casual for the date Sai was taking her on. Maybe even, she should dress in civilian clothes. Saryie then thought against it, wanting to be comfortable and casual as possible with Sai.

She honestly couldn't wait and was a little nervous to go out on a date with Sai that evening.

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 **Alright so next chapter is Sai and Saryie's date. You got to see Team H go head to head with Team 8. Team H still has a lot to work on with their new jutsu. Stayyy tune. Thank you to the people who do review!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. I own Saryie, Michi, and Azumi**


	16. Chapter 16

**Hey so yea, sorry for the lack of updating but it was only because of school. I'm working on 4 different group projects so I've been busy and havent had time to write anymore chapters. Hope you enjoy Sai and Saryie's date! Let me know what you think. And stay patient with me.**

* * *

 **Stirring Emotions**

Chapter 16

It wasn't till much later that night that Sai showed up to Saryie's door. The sun had already gone down and Sai seemed rather awkward as he held a bundle of flowers. He too wore his regular ninja outfit for this date so Saryie didn't feel bad for not dressing any differently.

Sai was definitely out of his comfort zone as he stumbled over what he wanted to say. He placed the bundle of flowers into Saryie's hands and she gratefully took them. She made a bee-line back inside her apartment, to put the flowers into some water. Saryie was happy she wasn't the only nervous one as she hurried back to the door where Sai waited. They both left her apartment, walking separately from each other, not touching.

Saryie let Sai lead the way since he was the one with the plan. Both were quite silent until Sai had them stopped outside a takeout venue. This peaked Saryie's interest as they both ordered a meal to go.

When they got their food, they headed over to the park. They walked at a slow pace with each of them having a takeout box in hand. The park was pretty empty and was quiet at this time of night.

"I figured we could watch the stars as we enjoy each other's company," Sai stated, with a light smile as he gestured to a bench.

Saryie followed his lead and sat down, before opening up her food and started eating. Sai joined her on the bench as they quietly ate and admired the ambience.

"This is nice," Saryie commented, softly.

"I'm glad you think so. The book had suggested star gazing along with a stroll through the park was a romantic idea," Sai mentioned, bluntly.

Saryie snickered a bit. "Do you get most of your answers about human interactions out of a book?" Saryie questioned.

"Yes, when I don't understand them," Sai answered, hesitantly.

Saryie looked contemplative at Sai for bit, before resuming to eat.

"So what are some of your likes and dislikes?" Saryie asked, interested.

"I'm not sure," Sai stated, monotone.

"How come?" Saryie asked, peering over at him.

"Never thought about it," Sai answered honestly.

"Well you have to have some sort of favorite of something. Everyone does!... Like what do you prefer to eat that you most enjoy eating?"

"I don't know."

"Just think about it. If you could eat only one food for the rest of your life what would you like it to be?" Saryie asked, getting energized.

Sai took a moment to think, before connecting eyes with Saryie. "I guess miso soup."

Saryie smiled widely. "See there you go. If you're willing to have it forever that must mean you like it and enjoy it," Saryie said, feeling chirper.

"What would be your favorite food?" Sai asked, keenly watching Saryie.

Saryie pursed her lips and lightly laughed. "I think it would be cakes; I love desserts. Stuff like sugar cookies. But chicken is good too. It's a close second," Saryie spoke, smiling.

They continued to talk about some more of their likes and dislikes as they ate their dinner. Once they were done eating, they got up and decided to stroll around the park together. Saryie was enjoying herself hanging with Sai and getting to know him more. Sai too found Saryie to be unusually interesting. She sparked a curiosity in him and unknowingly made him want to be around her. She was cheerful, understanding, and calm around him. Made him feel normal…

They were walking along the bridge in the park that crossed a small river as they continued to chat.

"Which color do you like?" Sai had asked.

"Blue. What about yours? What color do you like looking at?" Saryie questioned, back.

"Green is a nice color," Sai mentioned, not very sure.

"Green is a good color. It can represent growth, harmony, luck and wealth," Saryie responded, chipper.

"That sounds like something you read out of a book," Sai spoke, bluntly.

"Maybe it was," Saryie retorted, playfully with a smirk.

"How did your training go this morning?" Sai questioned as they both stopped walking on the bridge.

Saryie leaned against the railing of the bridge and looked down into the water as she snorted a laugh. "We failed at creating a defensive jutsu, but no worries we still have two more months to work on it. My team can do it. I know we can."

Sai took note of her determinism, watching her intense gaze at the river before her head snapping over to him, softening.

"How is Naruto's training going?" Saryie asked, curiously.

"Fine, I believe... Sakura worries for him. Naruto tends to push himself passed the level of exhaustion."

"He'll get the hang of the new jutsu in no time. He doesn't quit," Saryie spoke, confidently and smiled.

"Do you know Naruto well?" Sai asked.

"No, but I've seen how he has progressed... He was an outcast in the academy and in the village. I admire him for never giving up. and for his optimism despite people shunning him and excluding him. He didn't let that negativity hold him back," Saryie explained as she hopped onto the bridge's railing to sit on and look up at the stars.

"You were right that I would never be as strong as he is… and that's ok. I don't need be as strong as him. I just need to be as strong as I can be for myself," Saryie continued, calmly speaking with smiling.

Sai joined her on the bridge, sitting beside her. He admired her features in the dim lighting of the stars. Her words were processing in his head and he couldn't help but feel slightly awed at her reserve. Without hesitation, he leaned forward pressing his lips to her cheek.

Saryie froze as a blush crept up on her cheeks as Sai leaned back. Saryie had to clear her throat before she could speak again. She was still in shock and wasn't use to such intimate contact.

"What was that?" Saryie asked, softly, stuttering.

"The book had suggested ways in which to show affection on a date. One of them was kisses on the cheek, hand holding, arm over the shoulder, hugs, kissing with tongue…" Sai spoke and was cut off by Saryie.

"I don't want you to do something just because a book tells you to. Remember what we agreed on? You weren't going to be fake with me," Saryie stated, rationally, her cheeks still red.

"I don't believe I was being fake," Sai commented, his face blank.

Saryie blushed more at that and changed the conversation.

"Tell me about your childhood."

Sai stared blankly for a few minutes before, looking out into the river. "There's not much I can say. I was an orphan and recruited into the Village's Root division for Anbu training under Lord Danzo. I lived in a house with my brother since I was 6 until I was 14. Before that I was living under supervision and specialty training of the Root program that consisted of a strict routine," Sai explained.

"Who is Danzo?" Saryie questioned.

"I can't say."

"Why not?"

"Because of this," Sai stated as he opened his mouth displaying his tongue. Saryie could vaguely see the symbols of a curse seal. "I can't say much about the organization nor about Danzo."

"I understand," Saryie spoke sympathetic, her eyes looking sad.

"And what was your childhood like?" Sai questioned, his eyes focusing on her.

"My childhood wasn't very happy either… I struggled a lot. I told you how my parents weren't too happy with me wanting to become a ninja… they still, somewhat, shun me to this day. Growing up I was mostly a farmer's girl. I helped my father with the farm and helped my mom with the chores. There wasn't much to life except hard work and harvesting crops," Saryie commented, grimly.

"What made you want to become a ninja?" Sai asked, evenly.

Saryie smirked. "It's a long story, but basically I was tired of being a victim. I didn't want to feel helpless and scared ever again," Saryie spoke softly.

"What made you feel helpless?"

Saryie laugh. "Well in order for you to know that, I have to tell you the long drawn out story," Saryie said, smiling at Sai.

"We've got time," Sai stated monotone.

Saryie looked up at the stars as she thought about where to begin.

"I was six at the time when my home was attacked by wanted criminal ninjas. There was only two of them but enough to overpower mere farmers. I had been working pulling weeds in the field like my father had asked me to that day. My feet, hands, and clothes were covered in dirt and mud, but it was something I was used to. I was used to getting my hands dirty. I didn't see the ninja beforehand when they invaded the house, so when I got done pulling weeds, I went to find my dad. He wasn't out in the yard anymore so I went to check inside the house and that when I saw them. My six-year-old self-had stood frozen.

"The two bad men, had my father tied up. One was going through our kitchen's cabinets as the other was watching over my mom and my brother. When I had entered, the ninjas were surprised to see me, but my dad had quickly snapped me out of my fear by telling me to run and get help.

"I had run. I had run as fast as I could. I was abnormally fast for my age, but it wasn't enough. I heard one of the men start to chase after me. They didn't want to be discovered since they were criminals. They were common thieves. They weren't that dangerous, but compared to civilians, they were stronger than us.

"I had started screaming and hollering hoping someone would hear when the man was fast approaching me. My dad's farm was on the outskirts of the village so I wasn't sure if anyone would be able to hear me. I was approaching the river stream, when the man reached out to grab me.

"He caught me by my hair, pulling me back. I had started whimpering and crying as the man cursed and yelled at me. I fought against him trying to pull away. It only annoyed him, pulling me up by my hair to his face as he pulled out a kunai. He said he hated naughty children.

"I was paralyzed with fear then, seeing the evil glint in his eyes. I was frozen, I didn't know what to do. I never felt so helpless. That was when a flashy man in a green suit stepped in," Saryie paused and smiled softly at the memory before continuing.

"He saved me the man in green. I wasn't sure what he did. I believe he had hit the wanted ninja's arm to let me go, caught me from hitting the ground and then kicked the man in the stomach. The green suited man put me down as he made quick work of the wanted ninja.

"When it was all over he came back to me, telling me that I was safe now, that the handsome blue beast was here to save the day and he gave me a toothy grin. I was in awe of him and saw his Leaf headband. My admiration wore off as I soon realized my family was still in danger. I started frantically telling him to save them.

"The leaf ninja had understood, picking me up as I told him the way to my house. He had set me down outside, telling me to stay put because it might be messy. I could only stay put for so long when I heard rustling from inside the house. I had gone to the window and peered in to see the Leaf ninja taking down the other criminal ninja with ease.

"He had dragged the wanted ninja outside when he was done after untying my dad, chuckling as he told them I brought him here to save them. My mom was grateful. She had hugged me so tight because she was so worried, as I saw the Leaf ninja talking to my dad. I had pushed my way out of my mother's hug and ran up to the Leaf ninja.

"I had pulled on his pant leg to grab his attention. "How do I become strong like you?" I had asked him. He had chuckled once more. "You work hard for it. You train, but that's not all… you have to be strong at heart and believe in yourself" is what he told me. My parents had continued thanking him as my mom pulled me back from him, but I fought her hold on me as he was about to leave.

""What's your name?" I had asked. He grinned as he stuck his thumb out and pointed to himself as he replied. The Leaf ninja was Maito Gai. He's the one who saved me and changed my life ever since. He had asked for my name as well and I had told him my full name. He was taken back by the last name of Hatake, but soon smiled. He told me I could be as great as the Copy Ninja if I wanted to be. At the time, I didn't know who he was talking about, but I know now he was talking about Kakashi. My parents understood the reference and were curt with their farewells.

"Gai left with the two thugs, but he left a lasting impression on me. From then on all I wanted to do was to become a ninja and become strong like Gai. My parents told me that Hatake's were not fit to be a ninja. I pestered and pestered them though. I didn't focus on my chores but rather tried to learn how to fight by imitating kicks and punches the way I saw Gai do.

"It wasn't until I turned 8 that my father gave in and let me enroll in the academy. My mother wasn't too happy about it. She hoped that i would fail out of the academy and that I would never graduate. When I had graduated at 13, I was kicked out from living at home. Kakashi had heard about this and let me stay with him until I had enough money to sustain a decent living and that's pretty much how and why I became a ninja," Saryie finished after realizing she went off track a bit by talking about the academy.

She looked over at Sai; his face composed as he watched her.

"That was a fairly long story," Sai mentioned.

Saryie blushed and looked away.

"But it was very enlightening," Sai commented, watching her closely and saw the corner of her mouth tip upwards.

They stayed silent for a few moments longer, before Saryie got up.

"It really is a beautiful night," Saryie stated as Sai followed her lead.

"Yes it is," Sai spoke as he too got up and they started walking again.

They soon started heading out of the park and back into the Village. They made small talk along the way with Saryie enjoying Sai's company. The night soon came to an end though as Sai escorted Saryie back to her apartment. It was clear to Saryie that Sai wasn't sure how these typical dates usually ended as he stood awkwardly at her door. Saryie smiled.

"I had a good time tonight," Saryie commented, with a light smile.

Sai gave her a similar smile back. "I'm glad… I guess I see you some other time," Sai hesitantly said.

Saryie laughed lightly. "Yea, I'll see you soon."

"Well… Goodnight then," Sai stated, still smiling before turning away and making his exit.

Saryie watched him leave, content with how the night turned out before entering her apartment. She got ready for bed and went to sleep with a smile on her face, not knowing that tomorrow was going to deliver bad news.

* * *

 **Oh no… what has happened? Fine out next chapter. Hope you like Sai and Saryie's little date.**

 **You got to find out why Saryie wanted to become a ninja. All thanks to Gai which also explains why she's so close to Gai and Lee.**

 **Please let me know what you think.**

 **Thanks**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. I do own Saryie, Michi, and Azumi.**


	17. Chapter 17

**Well this chapter takes place in episodes 81-88 of season 4.**

 **Try not to cry. Oh major spoilers if you haven't gotten to season 4 of Naruto Shippuden.**

* * *

 **Stirring Emotions**

Chapter 17

It had come as a shock when the village found out about Asuma Sarutobi's death. It definitely shocked Saryie and then soon angered her. She had heard Tsunade had sent out 20 teams to scout for these two Akatsuki members that were in Fire Country's borders. The two Akatsuki had destroyed the Fire Temple and killed many innocent monks. That part alone infuriated Saryie, but then the Akatsuki was also able to kill one of their own.

They killed a Leaf Shinobi. They killed Team 10's sensei. They killed the son of the third Hokage. They killed a soon to be father. They killed a friend.

Saryie had not known Asuma personally, but she knew who he was. He was one of Kakashi's comrades and he was Shikamaru's sensei. Saryie could only imagine what it must feel like to lose your sensei and watch them die. Shikamaru must have felt helpless and must have felt guilty for not being able to prevent it.

It hurt Saryie's heart. She was so angry. She wanted to personally face the Akatsuki for taking away so many innocent lives. She spent the whole day training, to get out her frustration. She had gone to Tsunade to ask her what she was going to do about it, but Tsunade shooed her off.

After that she went to see how Team 10 was holding up. When she had seen Shikamaru out in the village walking around, he seemed quiet and deep in thought. She didn't disturb him and left him alone as she went to check on the others.

Choji was grieving inside his house, so Saryie wasn't able to see him, but she could hear him as she talked with his parents. Sakura had opened the door when Saryie had went to Ino's house. Sakura let her in at Ino's request and Sakura and Saryie both helped comfort Ino that night.

That's when Ino spilled most of the information she knew about Asuma's death in battle with the Akatsuki. She was sobbing, but Saryie was able to make out most of the story.

That Shikamaru, Izumo, Kotetsu, and Asuma had ran after the Akatsuki members after discovering the Fire Temple had been destroyed. They had managed to ambush Hidan but it was in vain. Hidan happened to be immortal and was able to kill Asuma with some kind of jutsu. When Ino and Choji arrived with Raido and Eboa, it was already too late. The Akatsuki retreated and were able to escape.

It only fueled Saryie's outrage more and she wanted something to be done about this. It angered Saryie how the cowards were able to escape. She didn't care how tough they were, she wanted to fight them.

The funeral was held the next day after word of Asuma's death got around. It was a dim day. Shikamaru didn't attend, Saryie could tell as she saw Ino and Choji place flowers on the grave. Saryie stood by her team as she glanced around at the other fellow shinobi that attended the funeral.

The funeral ended soon and Saryie and her team left after giving their condolences. All of them were solemn, but the one who was the least grim was Azumi. Saryie had ranted about how she felt and Azumi told her, her feelings were irrational. That death was a part of life and death is common in the life of a shinobi. That Asuma would have died sooner or later like all of them would. That ninja just tend to die sooner rather than later.

That only further angered Saryie. She ranted how the Akatsuki destroyed the Fire Temple that they were in Leaf's territory. That they were bad people. They killed innocent people. Innocent lives of the monks and anyone who gets in their way. Saryie wanted to fight them and make it right.

Azumi stated that she can't make it right, it be best to let Tsunade decide how to handle it.

Saryie was about to continue but Michi had grabbed Saryie's arm. He told her that some things are just out of their hands to control. That she best let it go and let Tsunade handle it.

Saryie had left in a huff, pouting. She wasn't happy about it. Not one bit.

The day had ended swiftly with Azumi having scheduled Team H to meet the day after tomorrow to train. Saryie reluctantly agreed, not happy that nothing was being done about Asuma's death. Saryie was restless that night.

The next day, Saryie woke up lazily around noon. Her mind was still turning and she felt exhausted from the lack of a peaceful sleep last night. She sat there in her bed for a while with her eyes still groggy from sleep. She knew she needed to get out of bed. She didn't like to be lazy.

With an unresolved sigh, she got up and got herself ready. She had no plans for the day but she would at least go outside and get some fresh air. She didn't want to be cooped up in her apartment just because she was still unsettled about the Akatsuki issue.

Once she was ready, she left her apartment and began walking around without a destination. Before long while she was walking pass the mountain side, she spotted a good friend of hers. A smile spread on to her face as she approached them.

"Lee!"

Lee looked up from his position, obvious that he was in deep thought beforehand. His face too grew into a smile as Saryie took a seat next to him on the railing he was sitting on. Both of them overlooking the village.

"How are you holding up Lee?" Saryie asked, delicately.

"Not bad. Just a little sad is all. It's tragic what happened to Asuma-sensei," Lee implored.

"Yea, I know. I can't imagine how Team 10 must feel," Saryie commented, her voice low. "I think Shikamaru's taking it the hardest."

"It's possible, but… I know Shikamaru. If anything he's probably already thought of a plan," Lee stated.

"I hope so but I don't even know if Tsunade would even allow it. I tried probing her for details on what she planned to do about the Akatsuki and she threw me out of her office," Saryie replied.

"Don't worry. Everything will work out for the better. I'm sure of it," Lee said, optimistically with a smile.

Saryie smiled faintly back, her eyes still contemplative.

"How are you handling things, Saryie?" Lee questioned, earnestly.

"I am…. mad about what the Akatsuki did to Asuma and to the Fire Temple," Saryie answered, honestly.

"That is understandable. You just have to trust that the Hokage is working on it. It upsets me too, but the village has to time its counterattack wisely and precisely. Rage is a perfectly acceptable way to feel but it is not the most productive. Passion and clear-headiness is the most productive!" Lee claimed, confident.

"Heh, everyone been telling me the same thing pretty much. That the village will handle it. That we have to wait to attack. I honestly can't stand having to wait to make a move," Saryie commented, evenly.

"Is that how this happened?" Lee questioned, lightly touching Saryie's bandaged arm.

Saryie flinched at the unexpected contact and retracted her hand. Her face grave a she looked down at her arm. She sighed. Lee's eyes softened, knowing the answer.

"Yea… I guess your right…. Its careless to move in without a plan," Saryie admitted.

"I'm sorry for pointing your injury out," Lee mentioned wholeheartedly, concern in his eyes.

"Eh, don't worry about it," Saryie said, lightly smiling. "By the way how did your mission go with captain kill joy?" Saryie remarked with a giggle.

Lee laughed too knowing Saryie meant Neji. "It went splendid! The mission was a success and I got to try a new technique on the enemy. I vanquished all of my foes," Lee announced, proudly continuing on.

When Lee was done telling Saryie about his mission and the new technique he learned, he soon asked about her own mission that she just got back from.

Saryie began telling Lee about the mission with the two heiresses, Nali and Shui, from the Land of Gems and talked about the bad guys that were after them. Saryie had to explain how she got injured and how she was on house rest when she got back to the Leaf.

"Oh dear. I did not realize you were on house rest. No wonder I haven't seen you in the training grounds," Lee commented to himself more than to her.

"Yea, it wasn't so bad though... I had company," Saryie hesitantly stated.

"Oh?... With whom?" Lee questioned curious.

"Sai."

"Really? I would have never guessed. That's great you made a new friend!" Lee stated with a wide grin.

Saryie smiled fondly to herself and purse her lips. There was a moment of silence before Lee spoke up again.

"There's something you're not telling me!" Lee declared.

"What?!" Saryie asked shocked.

"It is clear as the nose on your face. You are holding something back," Lee announced, his eyes trained on her.

Saryie blushed lightly and laugh anxiously. "Well… uh…. Sai took me out on a date few nights ago."

Lee's eyes widened, his face shocked before it slowly grew in a wide grin.

"AWEEE. THIS IS SO EXCITING. Saryie you went on your first date! But I am a little sad you went on your first date first before I went on my first date with Sakura. But that's beside the point. How was it?" Lee asked, beaming.

"It was nice and simple," Saryie answered, blushing slightly.

"Well as long as you are happy, I am happy for you!" Lee stated, with his thumbs up in the air.

Saryie laugh, wanting to change the subject. "You know what will make me happy?"

"What?"

"Racing you to the river! Go!" Saryie gushed as she hopped off the railing and started running.

Lee caught on quickly and raced after her. They ran until they got to the river. Both reaching their destination at the same time. They laughed and got their minds off of the troubling events. Saryie then got Lee to show her the new technique he came up with. After demonstration, they soon began to spar to kill time.

They didn't quit until the sun went down. Saryie was happy to spend time with Lee. He was one of her closest friends. He kept her positive and gave her inspiration to try hard. He was encouraging and supportive. She couldn't have asked for a better friend to have.

They rested on the bank by the river, exhausted from sparring; both trying to catch their breaths. Saryie was laying on the ground looking up at the stars, her mind traveling back to her date with Sai. She wondered if romance was something a ninja could afford to have… she wasn't too sure if Sai knew how he felt. It can kind of be dangerous for a ninja to be interested in somebody.

Saryie's mind went to Asuma. He was supposed to be a father and the Akatsuki took that away. Saryie was once again troubled. She really wished she could do something about it.

"So you got any plans for tomorrow?" Lee spoke up, already finished catching his breath, sitting up.

"Yea… my team wants to meet up…" Saryie answered, shoving her troubles aside as she too got up.

"I had heard from Kiba that your team has been working on a new jutsu? Is that correct?" Lee asked.

"Yea, the jutsu is still pretty raw. My team still hasn't worked out the kinks yet," Saryie responded, looking at Lee.

"Well that's Exciting! With the power of youth, your team will accomplish it. I have no doubt about that," Lee declared, with a smile.

Saryie laughed. They chatted for a little while longer before they both headed back into the village. They split ways as each headed home. Saryie got home and took a shower wanting to be clean before she laid down for bed.

She fell asleep quickly that night after expelling all of her energy today training, helping her sleep through the troubles on her mind.

The next day, Saryie headed to the training grounds to meet her team after she woke up and got ready. She was thankful she didn't have to fetch Michi again as he was already there waiting with Azumi at their spot. As soon as Saryie landed, Azumi wanted to get started.

Azumi began talking about what they needed to work on, but it was obvious that Saryie wasn't listening.

"Saryie!" Azumi called, impatient.

Saryie's eyes focused back in on Azumi. "What?"

"Get your head out of the clouds," Azumi stated.

"How can I even focus on training when the Akatsuki..."

"You don't need to concern yourself with that any longer," Azumi said, cutting Saryie off.

"What do you mean? The Akatsuki –"

"The Hokage had sent out a team this morning to handle the Akatsuki," Azumi stated, flatly.

"What?! Who did she send?" Saryie asked, astounded.

"Team Asuma consisting of Shikamaru, Ino, Choji, and Kakashi," Azumi answered, dully.

"WHAT SHE SENT THEM?" Saryie asked perplex.

"How do you know, this Azumi?" Michi asked after a yawn, more casually.

"I was up early this morning, strolling and I saw them at the front gate of Konoha heading off."

"She just sent one team?" Michi questioned, curious.

"No. I heard the Hokage say she was going to assemble a support team for the mission," Azumi replied.

"THAT SHOULD BE US. We should go and help them," Saryie declared.

"It's the Hokage's decision," Azumi stated.

"We'll lets go to her and ask to be assigned to it!" Saryie argued.

"She wouldn't give us the mission anyway," Azumi mentioned.

"What?! Why not?"

"She won't send us. To back up Team Asuma with our range of jutsu. It wouldn't help Team Asuma out much as another team would. Our skill set is more for protection and rescue details. We're not equipped to take down two members of the Akatsuki."

"And you think Team Asuma is?! We should be helping!"

"I wasn't the one to decide Team Asuma should pursue the Akatsuki, but they stand a fair chance with Shikamaru leading them and Kakashi's sharingan to perceive every move the opponent makes," Azumi stated, evenly.

"Screw this, I'mma go talk to Lady Hokage myself and demand to be sent out on that mission," Saryie declared, getting up.

"Saryie, your current mission is to work on this jutsu. Are you so eager to die?" Azumi called out.

"I'm not an idiot. I can take on the Akatsuki," Saryie retorted back.

Like a flash of lightening, Azumi was there blocking Saryie's path. Saryie barely had enough time to block Azumi's attack. Saryie angered, began to counterattack. Saryie knew she was a lot faster than Azumi and that she be able to land a hit. Right when Saryie was about to land a hit to Azumi, Saryie felt her body become numb.

Confusion clouded over Saryie's face as she slumped to the ground. Her mind cleared somewhat as she felt the slight ting of pain from where Azumi's needle cut her cheek. Saryie bit out a curse at Azumi as Azumi casually approached her.

"You're not equipped to face the Akatsuki, if you're not even tactical enough beat an opponent you already know," Azumi stated.

Saryie groaned, unable to move her body or her tongue.

"Awe, this is the life isn't it?" Michi stated as he laid down next to Saryie's paralyzed form, relaxing. "Just laying back and watching the clouds go by," Michi stated grinning.

Saryie began mumbling incoherent phrases that did not sounding too happy.

"Due to your lack of immobility, we'll have to call this training session to a halt. We'll have to work on this jutsu another time, when your mind is fully capable of focusing on the task at hand," Azumi commented, with a sigh.

"Yay free day!" Michi cheered, his hands behind his head as Saryie growled out some more.

"The paralyzing formula will wear off in a couple of hours. I'll contact you both later," Azumi stated as she made her leave.

Saryie let out a defeated sigh. She was frustrated with herself. She should have known better. Azumi was keeping her from talking to the Hokage for that mission. Now she was stuck paralyzed for two hours with no one but Michi for company. She really hated lying around, when she could be getting that mission to face the Akatsuki.

Especially if the Akatsuki are as formidable as they say, why would the Hokage send out Team Asuma? She understood Kakashi was a skilled ninja but the other three, not so much. Ino practically can swap bodies. Saryie didn't see how much the jutsu would come in handy in a fight. Choji just got bigger but he was a softy and temperamental when it came to his weight. Shikamaru had the brains to outsmart many ninjas but seemed to give up easily like Michi.

Saryie grunted. She wanted to be out on that mission.

"Hush, Hush. It'll all be alright. Just 1 hour and 43 minutes to go," Michi spoke, his eyes closed.

Saryie groaned again and Michi laughed.

Saryie was happy when she could finally move again. She gathered herself up quickly.

"Don't tell me, you're still going to the Hokage's office," Michi droned.

"Yes, I'm going. Don't try to stop me," Saryie threatened as she got up.

"Wasn't gonna. Just don't take it hard when you get denied," Michi commented.

Saryie grunted at the commented, annoyed and she was off. She ran as fast as she could to the Hokage's office. She barged in without care, startling Shizune but not Lady Tsunade.

Lady Tsunade glared at the noisy intruder, her temple already throbbing.

"What is it?" Tsunade asked, impatient.

"Lady Tsunade! I would like to request my team to go as back up to assist Team Asuma," Saryie stated, seriously.

"Request denied," Tsunade answered, shortly.

"Why?!" Saryie asked, becoming angry.

"I already assigned a backup team to the mission," Tsunade replied.

"What? Who?" Saryie asked, shocked.

"Team Kakashi."

"When was that assigned?"

"About four hours ago on the condition Naruto could finish his training," Tsunade answered evenly.

"When did they depart?" Saryie questioned, eagerly.

"Why does it matter to you?" Tsunade spoke, her eyes narrowing.

"I request you send me out on that mission to join Team Kakashi," Saryie stated, stubbornly.

"Request denied."

"WHY THE HELL NOT?" Saryie shouted slamming her fist on the desk of the Hokage.

"I already sent out a capable team to handle the job. There's no point in sending in another chunin especially one like you," Tsunade stated, her voice stern.

"What's that supposed to mean? I'm more than capable to fight the Akatsuki!" Saryie declared.

"You're impulsive and temperamental! You've nearly died three times in the last year from your B rank missions according to every mission report I received. You're reckless and you are not ready to handle any A or S rank missions."

"Why can't you let me fight them?! You sent my family out to face them but you won't send me!" Saryie argued, referring to Kakashi.

"Is that what this is about? Are you trying to compete with Kakashi?"

"No I want to help him and Team Asuma! Why won't you send me?!"

"Because I don't need another shinobi dead at my door!" Tsunade yelled, standing up glaring at Saryie.

"Now get out of my office and don't you even think about leaving the village to go after them. Otherwise your days as a shinobi are done," Tsunade declared, her voice low.

Saryie fumed but left slamming the door. She was angry she couldn't go. She was angrier at the fact that Tsunade thought she would wind up dead if she went. Saryie ran as fast as she could. She contemplated leaving the village but she didn't want to be exiled. She was so furious she was practically running in zigzags around the village.

She had to get her energy out. She went back to the training grounds, a different one than this morning's one and started having at it on a log. She punched and kicked for hours. She worked through her anger and continued on for endurance, frustrated with herself. She fought till her body was brimming with sweat and her knuckles started to bleed.

It wasn't until evening when she was interrupted by a familiar presence. Saryie took a glance over her shoulder seeing Sai. She didn't try to hide her emotions from him as he analyzed her.

"I'm not surprised to find you here and I'm not very good at reading people's emotions, but something tells me you're not ok," Sai stated, monotone.

"You got that right," Saryie muttered as she turned back to the log, punching it again, angry all over again.

"What's the matter?"

"I'm upset."

"About what?"

"How did your mission go?"

"It went fairly well. Shikamaru was able to finish off Hidan of the Akatsuki while Naruto finished off Kakuzu of the Akatsuki," Sai stated, evenly.

Saryie stopped her assault on the log. "They were both able to defeat them by their self?"

"For the most part, yes," Sai answered, still wondering what's got Saryie so upset.

Saryie scoffed as she hit the log with a chakra infused punch, making the log splinter.

"Will you tell me why your upset, now?" Sai asked blandly.

Saryie took a deep breath. She didn't turn around to face him. "No one thinks I'm strong enough… Not the Hokage… Not my team… Not my family… Not you… Everyone sees me as a reckless ninja that's going to get herself killed," Saryie spoke softly in all honesty, her face grim, staring into the log she was beating up.

Sai took in her words for a moment and processed the situation. He approached her slowly.

"I don't think you are not strong. I think you lack skill and proper training,"Sai stated, bluntly.

Saryie turned around to face him, her eyes narrowing in on him. He smiled his façade smile at her.

"I can teach you what I learned in the Root division, if you want,"Sai offered. "It will help improve your attacking pattern and make you more aware of your opponent. How about it?" Sai asked, extending his hand.

Saryie was thoughtful for a moment as she analyzed Sai's face, making the moment more awkward for him. She finally took his hand as a sign of agreement, before they started to train together.

* * *

 **Long chapter, but it needs to be to get out of the depressing death of Asuma. Sai's going to help Saryie learn to fight better. Idk, we're building up from here with Saryie's skill level and from their relationship.**

 **Please review, this was big chapter.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. I do own Saryie, Michi, and Azumi.**


	18. Chapter 18

**Well hope you like this chapter. Finals are coming around so wish me luck.**

* * *

 **Stirring Emotions**

Chapter 18

It had been a week of learning to fight a different way for Saryie as she trained with Sai. He taught her useful moves and useful tips. Not for just blocking an attack but to effectively counter block and to attack. His training helped her try to strategize her next move, rather than land punch after punch with no strategy. He gave her good insights and tips when fighting an unknown opponent. She was picking up the new skill set well, but had to fight the instinct of wanting to just rush in and attack.

Sai was supposed to meet her for the 7th time in a row this week at the training grounds after her team had got done trying to mesh their jutsus together. It hadn't been working out for her team as of lately. It was hard to get all their jutsus in line together and it was especially hard trying to create something that they had no idea how to create.

Azumi kept looking up methods and kept studying scrolls of other jutsus at the library, looking for clues as to how they might pull off this jutsu. Azumi made the team try something new every day. It was the only way they were going to make progress. They had to keep trying and failing, in order to learn.

Training with her team only took 3 hours out of Saryie's day in the morning. After that, Sai met up with her and they would spar. Saryie was sure her team didn't know about her and Sai's current relationship. He only showed up after they were gone, luckily. Saryie was happy to train with him.

He brought amusement to her day. Like the day he came to train with her after having spent lunch with Sakura and Naruto. He had asked her about something Naruto had said that he didn't quite understand. Sai had asked what reading a situation meant. He wondered how could he read something if he couldn't see it. That's when Sai described the situation to Saryie.

Apparently at lunch, because of Naruto's injured arm from the rasenshuriken, he couldn't use his chopsticks to eat. Sai had said he offered to feed Naruto, after Sakura said she would. Naruto got mad at Sai for apparently ruining the moment, to which Saryie laughed at.

Sai asked what was amusing about it. Saryie had to explain that Naruto wanted to be fed by Sakura because she's a girl and it's an intimate gesture. Sai nodded, but it was clear to Saryie that he still was confused. She tried to explain how Naruto probably has an interest in Sakura and wanted to bond with her over that and that Sai technically stole the moment from Naruto.

Sai seemed to understand a bit better at that analogy and it left him in deep thought that day. Not only was she learning from Sai, but she was pretty sure he was learning from her as well.

It surprised Saryie when she was about to leave her apartment that Sai stood there about to knock on her door. Saryie took a step back, after nearly running into him. She was surprised by his sudden appearance.

"Sai? What are doing here?" Saryie asked, bewildered a smile soon gracing her features.

"I came by to inform you that I won't be able to meet with you to train today or for a next few days. I've been assigned a mission. I'm not sure when I'll be back," Sai stated with composure, staring into her eyes.

"Oh…." Saryie stated, letting the information sink in. "Bummer! I hope the mission goes smoothly for you. I'll keep at the training while your away. I'll be able to beat you by the next time I see you," Saryie stated, chirper.

"You might. I think your capable of it," Sai commented.

"What kind of mission are you going on?" Saryie asked, curious.

"An A-rank mission. Captain Yamato, Sakura, and I have been assigned to lend support to Kakashi's team that's investigating one of Orochimaru's hideouts," Sai answered.

"Oh… Naruto not going with you guys?" Saryie asked surprised.

"No," Sai replied and averted his eyes. "He hasn't been assigned to the mission… We're actually supposed to keep it secret from him. I'm not sure I know how to keep a secret," Sai confessed, bashfully.

"Just don't say anything about it and if asked about it, just lie," Saryie offered, with a light laugh.

Sai looked blankly at her. "I'm not sure how to do that either," Sai stated, honestly.

Saryie laughed nervously. She wasn't really sure how one should lie. She didn't do it very often herself. "Uh… I'm not sure either how to explain it. Just… umm… don't make it obvious that your lying," Saryie said, hesitantly.

"Oh, I'll just look it up then," Sai stated.

"Yea that probably be easier, than me trying to explain it," Saryie muttered as the two of them stood in an awkward silence for a moment.

"Well I guess I should prepare for the mission," Sai stated, awkwardly as he started to turn.

"Ok, I'll see you when you get back. Good luck," Saryie called, optimistically.

Sai turned his head slightly with a smile and waved before disappearing.

Saryie stood there for a moment, dazed before snapping out of it knowing she was late to meet her team. She rushed over to the training grounds as quick as she could. Azumi and Michi were waiting patiently.

"Late again? This is becoming a habit isn't it?" Michi muttered, teasingly.

"Oh sheesh, I haven't been late in a while now, so it's not a habit!" Saryie defended with a roll of her eyes.

Michi snickered from his position on the ground. "Ever since Sai stepped into your life, you've been more late than usual."

"I have not! And… wait, you know about Sai?" Saryie mentioned, dumbfounded becoming embarrassed.

Michi laughed from his spot on the grass. "Oh yes, I do. He's been your latest training partner. I feel bad for old Lee. You kick him to the curb. I hate to see the day you replace us," Michi spoke playfully.

"What? ITS NOT LIKE THAT. Lee has been busy. I'm not replacing anybody. How did you know anyway? Have you been spying?!" Saryie asked all defensive.

"A bit... after one day of being too tired to move after training, I was relaxing in a tree for a while. When I heard some ruckus and checked it out. It turned out to be you and Sai. I'm not at all surprised though. You two been close since that mission," Michi replied casually.

Saryie cheeks were turning slightly pink at that comment. She was about to say something when Azumi cut her off.

"Enough chit chat, Saryie can spend time with whoever she wants," Azumi stated, plainly.

"Doing whatever she wants, I suppose…?" Michi remarked teasingly.

"Shut it, Michi!" Saryie snapped to which Michi smirked.

"Could you two be anymore childish…." Azumi muttered with a sigh, already frustrated with the two.

"Oh get to the point, what are we going to try today?" Saryie asked, wanting to change subjects.

Azumi looked annoyed before she sighed and pulled out a scroll, and displayed the contents of it.

"Summoning seals?" Michi questioned after a look at it.

"It's a start," Azumi addressed. "I've been reading through ambush tactics and summoning scrolls. I'm theorizing what if we can create a summoning seal that is triggered by chakra networks entering into the vicinity as form of a alarm system."

"What would the seal summon?" Saryie asked, focused.

"A water clone replica of yourself," Azumi answered, connecting eyes with Saryie.

"How would that help?" Michi questioned.

Azumi drew a circle on the ground and poked a dot right in the middle of it. "Michi, you will be the center, where your barrier is held. The outside parameter is my span of reach with genjutsu," Azumi stated, before drawing a bigger circle around the first circle. "My reach can be increased tenfold if my efforts are concentrate into certain areas of the circle." Azumi drew 8 lines through the circle, now resembling a pie. "If we can create the right type of summoning seal that can act as alarm system, it will notify me where the threat is coming from and concentrate my genjutsu in one direction rather than all at once," Azumi explained.

"What does that have to do with my water clones?" Saryie asked, inquisitive.

"The seal triggered will release a water clone. The water clone will be among the many I form with my genjutsu. The enemy would be caught fighting 30 illusions that don't die and can't inflict harm, but with one real clone hiding amongst them to kill them. It will at least stall time in an event of an attack, if the enemy can't find the real clone," Azumi stated.

"What if they break from the genjutsu?" Saryie commented.

"Then they'll spot your water clone easily, but you can make more water clones," Azumi responded.

"I can make water clones from my body out of thin air, but I can't make a water clone out of a clone," Saryie stated bewildered.

"You could do it if you had a body of water with you, right?" Azumi questioned, unfazed.

"Well… yea…" Saryie answered.

"We'll have that as well," Azumi stated.

"What? We're going to have a body of water with us?" Saryie asked.

"In a way, yes. We can have a water summoning seal."

"There's no such thing!" Saryie exclaimed.

"Not yet. If we can summon weapons from seals, why can't there be a way to summon a body of water?" Azumi addressed, logically.

Saryie was left flabbergasted. She didn't know what to say. She didn't think it could be done.

"So what your saying is were going to create lines of defense around the parameter so no one can get to my barrier as easily?" Michi asked, thoughtful.

"Yes," Azumi stated. "This jutsu has to be performed together in sync as one jutsu. Not many."

"What if the seals get tampered with?" Michi spoke.

"It's hard to tamper with a seal you can't see and can't find," Azumi mentioned. "Michi you're going to have to summon eight stone pillars. These pillars will be hidden until summoned when we create our defensive jutsu. When summoned they'll sprout from the ground and contain the seals," Azumi mentioned.

Michi nodded in understanding. There were a lot more aspects of the jutsu that they were going to have to hash out, but this was a start.

"So how do we even start with creating these seals?" Saryie questioned, concentrating.

"Trial and error," Azumi mentioned.

They did try many times; they had drawn so many different seals trying to create what they wanted. They referenced the scroll on sealing sigmas and summoning sigmas to try and get what they wanted just right. They spent hours testing each seal they made, it wasn't until they were interrupted that they quit.

The intruder was a standard looking shinobi who was sent to tell them that the Hokage wanted to see them. Team H stopped their training and together left to the Hokage tower.

While entering the Hokage Tower, they were almost ran into by Naruto who was leaving. He had a big grin on his face, happy for whatever reason.

"Whoa, hey Naruto, where you off to?" Saryie questioned, surprised.

"Oh hey… you're… what's her face… I'm heading out on a mission. Granny Tsunade is letting me go help Kakashi and the others, but I have to finish up some training. So I'll see you later…." Naruto gushed, in mid-step, pausing as he looked at her to finish his sentence.

"Saryie."

"Right, Saryie! I'll catch you later when I get back!" Naruto mentioned as he ran passed her and her team.

Saryie rolled her eyes and snickered at Naruto. She wondered how Naruto found out about the mission. She wondered if it was because of Sai. She smiled at the thought, amused.

"That Naruto… can't even remember anyone's name except Sasuke's," Michi muttered, with a smirk.

"Eh, it's not like he knows us well enough to know our name by now," Saryie commented as her team continued on their way to the Hokage's office.

"True. I never hung out with that brat in the academy. He was always getting into trouble," Michi commented, indifferently.

"He a lot different now than from back then," Saryie said.

"I don't know about that. He still gets into trouble, it's just more exhausting and dangerous trouble. Also, it's stuff I rather not bother with," Michi muttered.

"Oh you're just a big baby. Sometimes it's good to face challenges."

"I prefer not to."

"Ugh."

There banter was brought to a stop as they entered the Hokage's office. Tsunade's eyes darted to them as she sat poised in her chair. Shizune stood beside her, having been talking with her beforehand.

"Good. You're here." Tsunade stated as she closed the file on her desk that she was working on. "I have a mission for you three."

"You do?" Saryie asked eager. "What rank?"

Tsunade's eyes narrowed at Saryie as she answered. "It's a B-rank one."

"Ugh."

"Ignore her, Lady Hokage" Azumi stated, recognizing the annoyance on Tsunade's face. "What's the mission?"

"Shizune," Tsunade ordered, her voice angered.

"Right, you three are to check out a trail of houses being pillaged along the border of the Fire Country. Our sources tell us its two brothers that go by the name of Po and Kai," Shizune addressed as she placed the file on Tsunade's desk, displaying the pictures of the two brothers.

"Your mission is to stop these two from pillaging by detaining and arresting them. Understood?" Tsunade asked, her voice stern.

The three of them nodded their heads.

"Good. Their last known raiding was in this location." Tsunade pointed to a map. "Travel there and track them down. But be warned, these two aren't ordinary criminals. From intel we gathered they are two of Orochimaru's experiments. There's no telling what kind of jutsu these two may possess. They already slipped through one of our team's hands once and left a them in cold blood. Be cautious and be smart. I have the upmost faith in you," Tsunade leveled with them, her voice grave.

The three nodded. Saryie's interest peaked at the sound of the two enemy ninjas strength. She wasn't going to be a fool. She'll be smart this time and show them what she can do. Once Tsunade felt they all understood the situation, she dismissed them.

They were to get a head start as soon as they can. It would only take them a day to get to the site of the last pillaging, but from there it will be a tracking game until they can find the two brothers.

The team headed out, once they were packed, meeting at Konoha's gates. Azumi was the first one ready to go and Saryie was surprised to see Yamato and Sai still standing there. She knew he had a mission with Sakura and now Naruto. She wondered if they were being delayed by them.

"You still haven't left?" Saryie questioned as she reached them.

"No, sadly we're waiting on Naruto," Yamato mentioned, eyeing her. "You're Kakashi's niece, am I correct?"

"Technically no… more like 2nd cousins. But I am a Hatake," Saryie commented, eyeing Yamato, having seen him around before with Kakashi.

"Oh that's right," Yamato muttered as he sighed.

"How did Naruto find out about the mission?" Saryie questioned as she waited for Michi to arrive.

"It was my fault…. Clearly I'm not very good at lying," Sai mentioned, bluntly.

Saryie smiled at him. "Probably because of the terrible advice I gave you," Saryie said with a laugh.

"Your team has received a mission?" Sai questioned.

"Yea, we're headed off too, to stop some pillaging criminals," Saryie stated.

"Oh…" Sai acknowledge, not sure what else to say.

Yamato caught the tension between the two and was curious about it as he tried to get a read on Sai's facial expressions.

"So where are Sakura and Naruto?" Saryie asked, curious.

"She went to go find Naruto. He's been making us wait for 2 hours now," Yamato answered, with a heavy sigh.

"We ran into him on the way to the Hokage's office. He said he was going to go train first," Saryie stated, with an eyebrow raised.

"What? Ugh that kid," Yamato muttered with a hand to his head, shaking it.

Before Saryie had a chance to respond, Michi had arrived, intervening.

"Hey Saryie, surprised you beat me, but now I see why" Michi commented smirking as he motioned his head to Sai.

Saryie quickly punched him in his arm. "Shut up Michi."

Michi laughed at Saryie's slight blushing face.

"If you two are ready, let's go," Azumi stated, already turning her back and exiting Konoha's gates.

"I'm not sure Saryie wants to say goodbye yet, she might need a few minutes to-"

Michi was cut off as Saryie covered his mouth and pushed him forward.

"See you two later! Have a safe mission!" Saryie waved, as she and Michi left.

They took off after Azumi, Saryie letting Michi go.

"Why do you have to be such a brat?" Saryie asked, annoyed.

"Idk, why is my hair blue?" Michi commented, with a snicker as they headed off into their new adventure.

* * *

 **Okay! Whoop. So new mission coming up to take place around the same time frame as the three tail mission for Sai and the gang. So were in the middle of season 5. I don't expect the mission to be super long, just something to get us to point A to point B while Sai has the 3 tail mission.**

 **Anyway hope you enjoyed this bit.**

 **Please Review.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't not own Naruto. I own only Saryie, Michi, and Azumi.**


	19. Chapter 19

**Alright here's a short mission for all of you. I was advised by a friend to split the original chapter 19 in two so you'll get the second half of this mission next chapter so sorry. But anyway hope you enjoy this bit. I'm preparing for finals so after I post this chapter, I'll be studying. Hopefully I pass. Thank you to the reviewers.**

* * *

 **Stirring Emotions**

Chapter 19

"This is getting to be ridiculous. How hard can it be to find these two guys?" Saryie mentioned frustrated.

It was Team H's third day trying to track down the two wanted ninjas, Po and Kai. On the first day when they had arrived at the criminals' last known location, they didn't find much. The house was destroyed and was burnt down to ash. It was hard to pick up on their trail. Azumi couldn't find a hint of their chakra network and Michi had his little lizards scattered around the area.

The lizards were able to pick up traces of tracks but those didn't lead the team far. Saryie felt it shouldn't be so hard to find these two thugs. She had read the file that the Leaf had on these two criminals. There wasn't much info about their abilities except that they had brute strength. The file had stated that they were brothers and by the pictures, they didn't look all that smart. They had protruding foreheads and devious smiles. Po had a ponytail of hair and Kai had no hair. They defiantly look similar with long ears and big pudgy bodies.

On the second day they followed multiple leads, trying to anticipate the brothers next move and next target. It led to nowhere as the team could not find them. Saryie was tired of looking for them, she wanted to fight them. Sometimes a ninja's work was so boring when missions like these had a lot of downtime.

"Don't worry about it. Will find them eventually," Michi commented, sitting down by a tree.

Saryie knew Michi was happy for the continuous downtime and not having to fight anyone. The team had stopped to rest before resuming tracking, trying to find a new lead. Michi's lizards were in the surrounding area scattered trying to find anything useful.

Saryie sighed, she didn't like this waiting game as she glanced over at Azumi.

Azumi's eyes were narrowed as she stood tall, looking off into the distance.

"What are you thinking Azumi?" Saryie asked.

"We must have underestimated their abilities," Azumi stated. "We don't have much intel on their capabilities except that they're extremely strong… but that can't be all. They must have other skills. They were able to take out Leaf shinobi before, according to Tsunade's report. There's something we're missing."

"Like what? You think they can hide their chakra or their presence?" Saryie questioned.

"It's a possibility," Azumi stated, monotone.

Michi yawned, smacking his lips. "We'll find them… no worries… do you guys hear that?" Michi mumbled, lazily.

Saryie's and Azumi's attention turned to Michi, before picking up on what he was referring to. Suddenly they heard it. It was a low whistle, a melody from a flute that carried a soft tune to their ears.

Azumi's head began to feel fuzzy as her eyelids felt heavy. She was barely aware of her surroundings as she saw Saryie hit the ground. Azumi stumbled and fell to her knees, barely able to process what was happening. She saw out of the corner of her eye Michi's head fell to the side of his shoulder, asleep.

Azumi never felt this exhausted before. Her mind was barely able to process a coherent though, she just knew she had to move. She slowly moved her hand to retrieve a senbon from inside her poncho, her body fighting sleep. Without further delay, she stabbed her leg, awakening her senses, releasing her from the exhaustion.

Azumi could think clearly now and sensed the oncoming approach of two chakra networks. She noticed quickly her two teammates were still knocked out cold. She grabbed them both and hauled them up a tree as quickly as she could. The sounds of the flute growing louder. She took cover in the leafs as she spied the two wanted criminals, Po and Kai, strolling out of the trees. The sound of the flute stopping.

"I coulda sworn I heard something," the one with the ponytail, Po commented. He was holding a hand up to his ears as his other hand held a flute close to his mouth.

"Must be just a bunny," Kai commented in a rough voice. "Now let's go, I know there's a home somewhere around these parts we can have a party in."

"Must have been a big bunny. It was a loud thud," Po commented in a lighter tone, thoughtful. "The ones that go hippy hop."

"Who cares about the bunny. I'm starving," Kai muttered.

The two brothers' voices drowned out as they continued on their path. Azumi waited until they were out of hearing range before waking up her teammates. She did some hand signs before trying to release them from their comatose state. When that didn't work, Azumi tried to send chakra into their bodies hoping to wake them.

Azumi soon realized there was no choice, taking out a senbon from her poncho before cutting Saryie's shoulder, breaking the skin. Saryie woke with a start. She looked at the source of the pain on her arm.

"What the hell?" Saryie shouted, bewildered as she touched the cut.

Azumi didn't answer Saryie as Saryie began spilling out questions. Azumi next cut Michi's arm, waking him up too from his sleep. He didn't shout as loudly as Saryie but he was a bit surprised.

"I think I would of preferred staying asleep than being wakened up by that," Michi commented.

"What was that about Azumi?" Saryie nearly shouted.

"You two were trapped in a hypnotic genjutsu. The only way out was through pain," Azumi stated.

"Genjutsu?" Saryie questioned, letting the information sink in. "How come I couldn't detect it?"

"Because you were already lulled to sleep by the time it entered into your brain cavity," Azumi answered. "You've always been vulnerable to genjutsu. I've only taught you how to detect genjutsu and break away from it when you're conscious. However, this genjutsu was hypnotic. It led your body to become relaxed and fall into a deep sleep. You weren't conscious enough to fight it."

"How come you didn't fall under it?" Saryie questioned, eyes narrowed.

"I'm used to sensing and detecting when a genjutsu enters my senses. I was conscious long enough to know I had to break it before I too fell asleep," Azumi mentioned, pointing to the cut on her leg.

"How were they able to cast a hypnotic jutsu?" Michi asked, his tone serious.

"I believe it's by the melody cast by the flute in Po's hands," Azumi mentioned. "The two of them are on their way to pillage a new house just north east from here."

"What? They passed by?" Saryie asked, wide-eyed.

"Yes."

"Well let's go!"

"Wait." Azumi commanded without raising her voice. "You'll get trapped in their hypnotic genjutsu again if you rush in."

"Ugh.. you're right. So… it's their flute that causes the genjutsu?"

"Yes."

"How do you know?"

"I stopped sensing the waves of his genjutsu when he stopped playing that flute. We have to think about our plan of attack carefully," Azumi mentioned.

"Well would these work?" Michi spoke as he reached into his bag to pull out and display some ear plugs.

Saryie gave him a curious look.

"What? I live in a house full of women and I'm on a team of women. Sometimes I just like some peace and quiet while I sleep," Michi defended, meekly.

Saryie rolled her eyes as Azumi grabbed a pair of ear plugs out of Michi's hand.

"Doesn't explain why you have so many," Saryie commented at the same time Azumi spoke.

"These will work until we can destroy that flute," Azumi commented.

The three meshed out a plan that Azumi thought of before the team started to pursue the two brothers. They placed the ear plugs in their ears before traveling in the direction of the brothers. They found them easy enough, already at a new house. The team watched them from a distance before engaging.

They saw Po play his flute outside the home before he stopped and both Kai and Po went inside. Kai came out first dragging out a man that was dead asleep. Kai dropped him on the ground ungraciously and yelled at his brother.

The team waited patiently for their moment to strike. Po came out with a shiny vase and it seemed Kai got mad. He slapped the vase out of Po's hand, letting it smash onto the floor as he pointed back into the house. Po walked dejectedly back into the house and came out a moment later dragging a female outside.

Po placed the sleeping female next to the male, he did it more carefully than his brother. Kai pushed Po out of the way as he stepped to the female, grabbing her face to look at it. Saryie felt her stomach twist in anticipation as she saw Michi get into place.

Michi turned invisible using his camouflage jutsu as he neared the two unsuspecting ninja. Po was standing beside his brother Kai who was kneeling down by the unconscious woman. Before anyone could process what was happening, Michi whistled from beside Po.

Po's head snapped to the side and was thrown back as Michi punched Po on the side of his face. Kai was startled and turned to move but Michi grabbed Kai's shawl that was over Kai's shoulders and hurled him in the direction Michi punched Po. Michi made quick work to grab the two civilians and move them to safety somewhere in the trees, turning them invisible as well.

The two brothers quickly tried to get their bearings as they got up.

"What the hell was that?!" Kai shouted.

"Idk… there was an invisible man," Po commented rubbing his reddened cheek.

"Invisible man my ass," Kai stated scanning the area. "Damn it! Looks like they took our fun. Po don't just stand there. Play your flute."

"Oh right…" Po commented as he went to fetch his flute that was strapped to his hip.

"Will you hurry it up! Come-"

Kai was cut off with a rapid kick to the gut that sent him flying in the opposite direction from Po.

"KAI!" Po shouted stunned.

Saryie quickly punched Po in the face again, before twirling to kick the flute out of his hand. Po stumbled backward, looking dazed.

Kai got up with a grunt, rage seething from his face and was about to start charging at Saryie, when Michi intervened. Michi, who was no longer invisible, sent Kai backwards with a fist covered in his reptilian armor for a stronger punch.

Po tried to retrieve his flute but Saryie wouldn't let him pass. She blocked his attempts and kept the heavy guy at bay. Po swung his fists wildly and Saryie was able to dodge with her speed.

Instantaneously, both Michi and Saryie sent the two brothers in the same direction and jumped back. The two brothers had both fallen on to the dirt and were getting up when Azumi unleashed her jutsu on them.

"Ninjutsu, Senbon storm." Azumi called, having taken her poncho off her body.

She sent it spinning into the air, having control of it through her chakra. Her poncho was aligned with senbon and resembled the shape of an umbrella as it floated up in the air as it spun unleashing 300 senbon down onto the two brothers.

There was no escape and dust raised from the ground as the senbon fell. Michi took the opportunity to destroy Po's flute as the two criminals were stuck in Azumi's senbon storm. When Azumi's poncho was all out of senbon, it fell to the ground close to her feet. The dust cleared and the team was shocked to see that the two brothers were still standing without a scratch.

Both Po and Kai's skin had not been gored by the senbon. Azumi's eyes narrowed, observing. The rough exterior of the two brother's skin had changed. It looked to be shifting scales of flesh protruded from their bodies to cover them.

Kai smirked. "Well that was fun… Now it's our turn," Kai spoke, confident.

* * *

 **Left it on a cliffhanger, hope you don't mind. I'll be wrapping up the mission next chapter.**

 **Hope you liked this chapter**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. I do own Saryie, Michi, and Azumi**


	20. Chapter 20

**Alright the other half to the mission. This story is getting a lot longer than I expected. I had mapped out this story but never really thought of how many chapters it was going to be. I definitely don't wanna make it more than 40 so I'm hoping I can wrap it up before then. Also I'm thinking of making a separate story centering on Azumi and her inner monologue because I would like to explore her character more. We'll see. I have a enough hardship creating these missions Dx Oh and I passed my exams so yay! Anyway enjoy the chapter my very silent audience!**

* * *

 **Stirring Emotions**

Chapter 20

Team H was tense and was strucked with utter confusion as to why the two brothers were not impaled by Azumi's jutsu. Azumi's senbon jutsu usually was spot on and there was no way to avoid that direct attack unless the ninja happened to summon a barrier in time. Team H stood poised, ready to move, trying to anticipate the enemies' next move after Kai's lingering comment.

Azumi's eyes widened as she spied Kai reached for an object in his pants. A flute was retrieved and it was brought to Kai's mouth as he smirked, triumphantly. The team had not anticipated a second flute and hoped the ear buds that they wore would still block the tune. Kai began playing and the earth shook.

Team H moved, leaping into differently directions, trying to forestall the attack but were grabbed as vines from the Earth wrapped around their bodies and tied their arms around their backs.

Kai continued playing his flute, the vines bending to the will of his flute. It brought the three captured shinobi closer as they were aligned in front of Po and Kai, completely restrained by the vines.

"Now let's see what we got here," Kai chimed after he stopped playing his flute.

He strolled over to Team H, knowing they were powerless with their arms and hands tied behind their backs. He took a look over their gear, a slight irritation frown forming on his lips.

"Eh, Leaf shinobi… typical," Kai muttered after tapping Saryie's forehead protector.

He then spied something peculiar protruding out of her ear, after examining the contours of Saryie's face. He ripped out Saryie's ear plugs and chuckled as he tossed the ear plugs behind him.

"Very clever… ear plugs. To keep you from hearing Po's genjutsu, but you didn't know about mine… did you?" Kai mocked, waving his flute in her face and tapped her nose lightly.

Saryie scowled, now having clarity in hearing what Kai was saying, not liking their predicament or Kai's mocking behavior.

"Don't underestimate us!" Saryie bit out, angry.

Kai laughed. "Underestimate you? Sheesh…You three got us by surprise that's for sure, but that was lucky. You're as good as dead now," Kai commented as he reached down grabbing Saryie's pouch of kunai at her hip.

He unhooked it from her hip and tossed it to the other side of the field, it landing by Azumi's discarded poncho.

"You won't be needing these."

"Awe, they broke my flute," Po whined from the other side of the field, inspecting the remains of his once beloved flute.

"You can make a new one, bro," Kai mentioned as he continued to strip Team H of its weapons and unplugged their ears.

After Kai was done, he studied the bunch before him. Saryie was definitely looking irritated as she was glaring at the two and analyzing their situation. She was looking around for a means of escape and tried studying the two brothers. Azumi kept her gaze steady, not at all fazed as she watched Kai strip her of her weapons from her back and legs. Michi had his eyes narrowed but kept silent, his mouth set in a tight frown.

"Po get over here," Kai called, once he was done.

Po waddled over, a dejected look on his face holding pieces of his flute. Kai slapped them out of Po's hands, demanding his attention. Po seemed saddened and shocked at the action from his brother, to which Saryie caught onto.

"Which do you prefer?" Kai questioned, pointing between Saryie and Azumi.

Po looked over them, hesitantly. "Idk…"

"I'm liking this pretty little girl right here," Kai spoke barely letting his brother finish. He had a wicked gleam in his eye as he stepped forward grabbing Azumi's chin making her look up at him.

Azumi didn't even flinch and looked calmly into Kai's eyes.

"Idk brother… the civilian woman looked softer…" Po commented, offhandedly, starring off to the house.

"I suppose your right…. This one has sharp features, but she is younger," Kai spoke with a smirk as he went to grab a hold of her hair, undoing her bun.

Azumi winced, softly at the sudden pull of her hair becoming undone, but continued to stare evenly at Kai. Saryie was struggling against the constraints, wanting to punch Kai in the face.

"Get your hands off her!" Michi protested.

Kai laughed, amused by Michi finally speaking. Kai let Azumi's hair go and it fell around her face. Kai stepped toward Michi, a smirk gracing his face.

"You're the invisible man, eh?... but that's not all you can do. I saw how your skin changed shade. Are you by any chance… part of the Haruki clan?" Kai gleamed at Michi, staring down at him.

Michi didn't answer in defiance. He was just glad that Kai had stepped away from Azumi.

"No answer? Find by me, I guess," Kai muttered as he brought his flute to his lips.

The tune triggered the vines around Michi to tighten, it was hurting him to breath as Michi tried to struggle against them.

"Yes, I'm part of the Haruki clan," Michi answered out of breath in contempt as the tightening of the vines stopped.

Kai removed the flute away from his mouth.

"Thought so… you see… I know much about your reptilian armor jutsu. When we were Orochimaru's test subjects, he was testing out variations of your clan's special armor jutsu. He seemed intrigued with the idea of one's own skin being impenetrable…. well that is until he got bored and went on to experiment on something new….

"Do you know how many days we spent being trapped in that hell hole of a hideout of his?" Kai asked rhetorically, not waiting for an answer. Saryie had stopped struggling to take in what Kai was saying, listening carefully.

"It's dark… dingy, smelly, and cramped. I didn't think I ever see the sun again, but what you know... Me and my brother broke free during a rioting battle. We punched our way through… all thanks to your lovely family's jutsu. Now there's no way in hell I'm going to be thrown in a cage again," Kai mentioned bitterly. "Me and Po are free men. We take what we want when we want it and I don't appreciate you and your Leaf shinobi kind destroying our little way of life. Po loved his flute and now you'll all have to suffer the consequences… Unfortunately, you'll be awake while we do it," Kai spoke, glaring at Michi before looking at the rest of them, feeling victorious after his little speech.

He got up, his features relaxing as he shouted to Po.

"Watch them brother. I'mma find those two civilians that these Leaf shinobi tried to take from us," Kai spoke before heading off into the trees.

Po sat quietly down at first, staring at the three of them until a loud rumble came from his stomach. Po eyes widened as he hid his belly with his arms.

"Sounds like you're hungry," Saryie mentioned in a lighter tone with a friendly smile.

Po looked at her skeptical, taking in her soft features.

"You don't have to be embarrassed. I'm a little hungry too… actually," Saryie continued, reading Po's reactions.

Po skepticism faded and he seemed a little apprehensive. "I don't think you should be talking," Po quietly mentioned, shy.

Saryie smiled gently at him. "I'm sorry, I'll quit speaking then," Saryie commented.

A minute went by as Po stomach rumbled again, and Po sat embarrassed.

"I think you should go grab some food, you sound real hungry," Saryie mentioned.

"I am hungry," Po stated, looking at her.

"There might be some food in that house. Why don't you go get yourself some?" Saryie suggested.

Po looked between the house and her for a bit. His eyes lingering on the house until he made the decision to go get some food.

Once Po was inside the house, Saryie snapped her head to her teammates.

"So what are we going to do?"

Azumi kept her eyes on the house that Po had entered into and then to the trees as she answered in an even voice. "I can break free, but we need to focus on how we are going to capture these two."

"Can't you use your paralyzing poison?" Saryie questioned.

"No. Kai took away the poison. It was in my pouch. It's on the ground other there, see it?" Azumi gestured with her eyes, Saryie nodded.

"But we have a bigger problem on how we inject the poison if my senbon wont penetrate their skin," Azumi stated. "We have to find their weakness."

"I may be wrong, but I might know their weakness," Michi stated, his face serious.

Azumi and Saryie both glanced over at him.

"They said they got their jutsu from the Haruki clan right? Well the reptilian armor needs a steady stream of chakra to initiate the barrier and keep it intact. When we had attacked them by surprise their skin wasn't hard like armor. I think they have to activate the armor and consciously put chakra into it. They had anticipated the senbon attack and had enough time to power up in order to avoid injury. I think we just have to find the right moment between when they power up the armor and when they power it down," Michi spoke, his eyes connecting with Azumi.

She nodded, turning her head to view the trees.

"We'll test your theory. Once I cut the vines and free myself, I'll cast a genjutsu," Azumi stated.

"Won't they know though?" Saryie questioned.

"Yes, they'll be able to tell right away I casted a genjutsu but it will give me a second of cover to escape without them seeing where I've gone. Once their attention is diverted to me, I'll set you two free. Saryie be sure to grab my paralyzing poison for me. Michi, you can hold them off and test your theory, once its confirmed, you and Saryie tag team them and I'll wait for my moment to strike," Azumi spoke, quietly.

The two of them nodded as they heard Kai coming into the clearing. He glared as he saw Po no longer was watching the three. He shouted for Po inside the house. Po came out hesitantly, food in his mouth. Kai began shouting at Po for leaving the ninja unattended. Po had argued he was hungry and they were tied up. Kai was still annoyed as he informed he had found the two civilians, still knocked out cold and set them aside. While Kai and Po were talking, Azumi ripped at the bandages on her arms behind her back. Hidden beneath the bandages on Azumi's arms were five spare senbon each. Using one of her spare senbon, Azumi was able to tear the vines and quickly casted a genjutsu.

Azumi disappeared into the trees as the genjutsu hit the two brothers for a moment. They were able to quickly snap out of it and their attention was brought to the two captive leaf ninja and the spot where the third one was missing.

"What the hell? Where did she go? How did she escape?" Kai yelled, outraged as he stormed forward.

"I thought you rid them of their weapons… how did she cut the vines?" Po asked, chummily.

"Ugh I don't know, but no matter. I'll find her," Kai spoke as he reached for his flute at his hips, wetting his lips.

Before he could utter a tune, a senbon flew out of the trees and hit Kai's flute. Kai curse as the object fell to the ground. Two more senbon flew out of the trees as Kai lend down to grab his flute. The two senbon cut the vines from Michi and Saryie's figure, setting them free.

Saryie disappeared in a flash grabbing Azumi's pouch and her own as she ran into the trees. Michi quickly turned invisible and kick the flute out of Kai's grasp. Kai cursed as Michi sent another kick to Kai's form and then attacked Po's stunned form.

Po fell to the floor and as Kai was getting up, Michi revealed himself and smashed Kai's flute with his reptilian armor fist. Kai growl as he charged at Michi, engaging in a fight. Po slowly got up and proceed to help his brother fight Michi. Michi was able to keep the two at bay while Saryie and Azumi waited for their moment.

Once Saryie delivered the pouch to Azumi, she waited a bit and watched how the two brothers fought. She couldn't go rushing in with the level of their strength and mass. Michi seemed to be holding his own though. He was using his reptilian armor to partially cover his body, mostly his arms in order to send a more powerful punch or to help block Kai and Po's attacks.

The brothers were trying to tag team Michi and Saryie knew she had to go out and help eventually. She strapped on her kunai pouch to her hip and took out her two sticks. Once she saw her opening, she sprang out from the trees activating her water blades.

She began attacking Kai, being sure to miss his powerful swings as she kicked and swatted at him with her blades. Her blades couldn't cut through his thickening skin that kept hardening, but the more she swung her blades at him, the more she could tell there was a weakness to his jutsu like Michi said.

She attacked one spot on his arm deliberately to test her theory. She hit him with one blade that did not break the skin and 30 seconds later she hit the spot again and her blade sliced through his skin. Kai angered, threw a punch but Saryie was able to jump away from him.

"Michi!" Saryie called to him.

Michi landed a blow to Po, pushing him closer to Kai. Michi jumped back as well, looking Saryie in the eye. Saryie nodded to Michi.

"We got 30 seconds to make this work," Saryie commented.

Michi nodded and performed some hand signs before smacking both hands down onto the dirt.

"Earth style, shifting landscape."

The ground leading to Kai and Po began to lose its solidary as the land shifted like waves in the ocean. Kai and Po stood frozen trying to hold their balance and waiting to see what type of jutsu Michi had casted. Their skin was activated and Saryie smirked as she rushed out into the shifting dirt, moving quickly.

There was only thirty seconds before their skin went back to being soft for 5 seconds. Saryie maneuvered through Michi's jutsu easily, having practiced with this terrain before. She came up to Kai and Po under 20 seconds, her two blades directed at slicing through their middle sections but it did not pierce them.

The brothers turned towards Saryie who was between them, blades out stretched. The two brothers went to attack her with their powerful fists. Saryie smirked as their fists came down right at the 29 second mark. Saryie escaped from their attack, leaving a water clone in her place as she moved out of the way.

The brothers were stunned at the remains of the water clone and were turning around to see where Saryie had gone, when two senbon flew into the base of their necks. The two brothers were caught off guard and saw Azumi standing there behind them with an even stare as they fell to the ground. Their bodies successfully paralyzed.

"YES! Finally," Saryie cheered in victory as she watched the two brothers fall to the ground.

"Pheesh you're telling me. I hate to see what they had instore for us when they had caught us," Michi muttered, standing up straight, his jutsu disappearing.

"We need to take these two back to the Leaf Village," Azumi stated as she walked over to their pile of disregarded weapons. Azumi grabbed her poncho from off the floor and proceed to put it on.

"Yea, yea, always about completing the mission with you," Saryie spoke as she headed over to check on the two sleeping civilians.

Michi began to form more hand signs before slamming one hand to the ground.

"Summoning jutsu".

A large lizard, almost as tall as the trees, appeared. It blinked its eyes steadily as it focused on Michi. Michi gave it a toothy grin.

"Hey Gongeku. It be a huge help if you could hold these two convicted felons in your mouth for a while," Michi mentioned.

The lizard blinked before looking at the two brothers that were paralyzed on the ground. The lizard huffed as it opened its mouth and snatched up the two brothers with its tongue. It held them in its mouth as Michi grinned.

"Thanks pal, see you soon," Michi spoke as the lizard poofed away in a puff of smoke.

Once that was done, Michi went over to collect his weapons off the ground before heading over to Saryie who called for Azumi's help.

Azumi looked over the two civilians, before she cut them with a senbon very mildly to wake them up. They woke with a gasp all frightened.

"Hey! It's alright. You're safe," Saryie tried to comfort them.

The man and woman looked around taking a glance at their surroundings.

"All I remember is the tune of a flute before…. Feeling very exhausted," the woman spoke.

"Yes, some very bad ninjas were here, but we took care of them. We're Leaf shinobi, we are here to help you," Michi stated, soothingly. "It'll be alright now."

"Oh thank you," the man spoke up as he held on to his wife.

Once the civilians were ok and back to their feet, the team set off back to Konoha. Saryie was happy the mission was completed and it was a success. She could only hope that Sai's mission went as well too.

* * *

 **Well one mission down, I wonder how Sai's went. Lul. If you watched the show you already know, but don't worry I'll remind you of some of the details.**

 **Hope you liked this chapter**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. I do own Saryie, Michi, and Azumi**


	21. Chapter 21

**So this is the start of season 6 in Naruto Shippuden.**

* * *

 **Stirring Emotions**

Chapter 21

Team H arrived back in the Hidden Leaf Village close to six o'clock that night. They immediately headed to the Hokage's office to deliver the news of their mission. When Tsunade allowed them to enter the office, they opened the door and walked in.

"Oh you three… well that took you a lot longer than expected," Tsunade drawled out, with a curious eye.

"It was rather difficult tracking them down and we're not as skilled in tracking as Team 8 is, Lady Hokage," Azumi stated, evenly.

"Yea if you wanted fast, you should have sent team 8 to do it!" Saryie commented, annoyed at Tsunade's snide remark.

"Team 8 was on another mission of higher importance. I just figured you three would give me the same results they could. This is why you're still stuck with B-rank missions, Saryie," Tsunade argued, her temple beginning to throb.

"The mission was a success, Lady Hokage. We captured the two brothers. Your reports were right. They were part of Orochimaru's experiments and were able to escape the Leaf ninja team before us by a hypnotic genjutsu," Azumi addressed.

"Genjutsu?!" Tsunade repeated, surprised. "Very interesting… well it seems I did sent the right team for the job. No one can detect a genjutsu quite like you can, Azumi," Tsunade spoke, curious, her eyebrows narrowed.

"Yes. The genjutsu was cast by Po's flute that carried a melody that places the victim under a comatose sleep that can only be broken through pain. We're able to destroy Po's flute and Kai's matching flute in order to capture them," Azumi spoke, her face composed.

"That's not all. They also possessed jutsu similar to Haruki clan, Lady Tsunade," Michi stated, respectively.

Tsunade's eyes widened. "Elaborate."

"It seems that Orochimaru got a sample of one of Haruki clan's cells in order to incorporate it into Po and Kai's composition. Their skin can harden into a protective barrier without performing hand signs, but it only lasts within 30 seconds until their skin shifts back to normal for 5 seconds," Michi explained.

Tsunade sat quietly for a moment. "Very interesting. Where are they now?"

"There in Gongeku's mouth at the moment," Michi mentioned, with a grin.

"Right, I'll call for Anbu to take them out of your hands and get them to the prison after interrogation," Tsunade stated. "For now, you three are dismissed. Michi wait outside for the Anbu to arrive."

The three of them nodded before exiting. Michi sighed loudly and murmured something about he just wanted to relax. Saryie rolled her eyes. When they got outside, Saryie and Azumi waited with Michi for Kai and Po to be taken off their hands and out of Gongeku's mouth. Saryie stayed with Michi because she wanted to be sure Michi did as Tsunade instructed. Azumi waited with her team to make that the two brothers were officially detained and didn't break away.

The three Anbu showed up soon enough and Michi summoned Gongeku. Gongeku appeared, blinking mildly as Michi sweet talked him like a dog. Gongeku spit out the two brothers that seemed to be still groggy from the poison. The Anbu handcuffed them and put seals on their cuffs, blocking their use of chakra.

They took the brothers away in a puff of smoke and not soon after were they gone that Azumi departed. Michi was relieved and started to walk lazily home after summoning Gongeku away. Saryie was satisfied and headed home as well. She needed a shower and to unpack.

Once she got to her apartment, she did just what she wanted and took a shower. Afterwards, she debated on whether to eat at home or to go out and eat. She chose the latter, not feeling like cooking. She headed to Ichiraku Ramen shop and was surprised who she found there.

"Naruto?" Saryie questioned as entered the shop and spied the blonde at the stool in front of a bowl of ramen.

Naruto turned around, with an eyebrow raised and then smiled. "Hey, its… um… Sari," Naruto spoke, with a sloppy grin.

"Saryie," She corrected, unfazed with a smile.

"Yea, yea that's right, sorry. You know I really need to get better with names," Naruto muttered with a grin.

"It's ok. Team Kakashi is back from their mission already?" Saryie asked, curious, standing beside Naruto.

"Yea, we just got back," Naruto answered.

"Where's Sai?" Saryie blurted out, and her cheeks turned slightly red as Naruto stop for a moment confused.

"He's at home. I invited him and the others to join me, but they are all being party poopers. All of them just wanted to relax and well Sai, he's just an antisocial guy anyway," Naruto mentioned, blabbering not really noticing Saryie's embarrassment.

"Do you know where he lives?" Saryie asked him, eagerly.

"Yea, I sure do. He lives like 3 blocks from here on 5th street in apartment 45 B," Naruto answered, clueless to why Saryie was asking.

"Ok thanks Naruto! See you later," Saryie stated rushing out, not giving Naruto time to respond.

Saryie rushed to Sai's apartment. She wanted to see how his mission went and tell him about hers as well. She wanted his company and was eager at the thought of seeing him.

When she got to the apartment that Naruto stated was Sai's, she knocked on the door but there was no answer. Saryie was disappointed when no one came to the door and decided to head back to her own apartment, thinking about picking up food along the way.

On her way back to her apartment she ran into Sai. She was surprised to find him and it looked like he was surprised to see her.

"You're back from your mission I presume," Sai stated.

"Yea," Saryie nodded, clearing her throat. "I just heard you got back too from Naruto," Saryie stated.

"We did. I had gone to your apartment to see if you were back as well but you weren't home," Sai spoke, bluntly.

Saryie giggled. "I was just at your apartment."

Sai clocked his head in interest. "That certainly is an amusing circumstance," Sai muttered.

"Yea," Saryie agreed and looked shyly away. "So um… do you want to go get something to eat and talk about our missions?"

"That sounds good, where would you like to go?" Sai questioned, staring intently at Saryie.

"Doesn't matter to me," Saryie stated, with a smile.

Both of them started to walk together until they got to a dumpling shop and went in to order. They waited for their food, sitting at a table in the small restaurant.

"So tell me about you mission first," Saryie commented.

"Well Team Kurenai had discovered Orochimaru's hideout but it got destroyed and they were after the remaining survivors. One of the followers of Orochimaru was a female ninja that was crystal style user," Sai began, in a monotone voice.

"Crystal style!?" Saryie asked shocked, intrigued.

"Yes, she could practically crystalize anything, even internal body fluids," Sai replied, with a straight-faced. "We caught up to Team Kurenai but they were trapped inside a crystal barrier. Naruto was able to break it using collaboration ninjutsu with his summing toads."

"Oh cool. So he mastered a new jutsu already?" Saryie asked, eyes widening.

"Yes. He's quite determined to catch up to Sasuke," Sai mentioned.

"So what happened after that?"

"We discover Hinata had been crystalized but was able to survive by releasing chakra from all her chakra points when she was hit with the jutsu."

"Oh good, so she's ok?"

"Yes," Sai answered as he continued. "We were up against the crystal style user and 5 others of Orochimaru's experiments. They had a small boy with them named Yukimaru and we discovered what they were after. The boy was able to summon and control the three-tails."

"WHAT? The three-tails? Are you kidding me?" Saryie spoke, maybe too loud for the quiet restaurant.

Others looked at them, but Saryie paid them no mind.

"No. I'm completely serious," Sai mentioned, monotone, his eyes watching hers.

"What did they want with the three-tails?" Saryie questioned, lowering her voice.

"It's still unclear… but most likely, to use it and obtain its chakra," Sai responded.

Saryie nodded her head in understanding.

"Once we found out about the three-tails, we sent word to Tsunade and that's when they deployed another team composing of Shizune, Ino, Tenten, and Lee."

Saryie's eyes widened but she didn't say anything and let Sai continued.

"Lady Hokage had plans to seal the three-tail beast away but we were unable to manage so. The tailed beast became wild and Naruto had to stop it," Sai stated as he continued to talk about his mission.

He gave Saryie a good amount of information about the battles and the details of the three-tails to which Saryie was most interested about. Saryie listened intently, taking bites of her food but mostly entranced by the story.

"So what happened to the boy?" Saryie questioned at the end of it.

"Naruto let him go," Sai answered, bluntly.

"Sounds unlike him," Saryie stated, batting her eyes confused.

"I agree, but I believe Naruto must have known the boy would be aright if he were willing to let him go," Sai concluded.

"It sucks your mission wasn't a success though," Saryie commented.

"Perhaps, but not every mission can be," Sai mentioned with a smile.

Saryie smiled back at him.

"What about your mission? Was it a success?"

"Yes!" Saryie blurted out, chipper. "We had to track down two of Orochimaru's experiments too. They were brothers. We captured them and it was so hard to find them," Saryie spoke, fast.

Sai tried to keep up as Saryie energetically talked about her mission and the battles and the faults of it. Sai's stare was unfazed as she went through all the details about her team being trapped under a genjutsu and being captured to being able to finally capture the wanted ninjas.

"Sounds like you had an exciting mission," Sai commented, steadily.

"Yea, so I'm glad you're back from your mission as well. Can we pick up with training the day after tomorrow?" Saryie questioned.

Sai smiled as he nodded, taking a bite of his food.

Saryie smiled.

"You have plans tomorrow?" Sai asked, lightly.

"Um... yes. My team wants to meet up tomorrow and I might go over to my family's farm for a few too…" Saryie trailed off, seeming to want to say more.

Sai sat oblivious as he asked about her team.

They continued talking for quite some time until after their meals were done. They soon got up after their meals and Sai walked her back to Saryie's apartment. He waved farewell after dropping her off as he headed back to his own home, feeling content about how the day had ended.

* * *

 **More Sai and Saryie bonding coming up next chapter! Hope you like this bit and you feel caught up where the store line is. Hope you enjoyed.**

 **Please review!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. I own Saryie, Michi, and Azumi**


	22. Chapter 22

**Ok sorry I didn't update last week. I was traveling. Also I've been distracted by Pokémon. Forgive me. I need to get back on track with writing this story before the summer is over. Hope you enjoy. Reviews are always appreciated. Thank you!**

* * *

 **Stirring Emotions**

Chapter 22

The next day didn't go as planned as Saryie soon found out her team's meeting was canceled. Azumi had got called on a mission. Saryie was a little bit annoyed at that. It seemed Tsunade favored Azumi more and gave her higher ranked missions, even though Saryie knew that wasn't the case. It was mostly due to Azumi's skill in genjutsu and her level-headedness that got her assigned to missions. Azumi will probably be the first one from their team to make jonin, but Saryie tried not to remain bitter.

It was a beautiful day and even though her morning got canceled, she still had to go visit her family's farm today. It wasn't a day that she could take off and just go lay around all day, even though Michi would begged to differ. He was happy having the day off and getting to rest.

Saryie was strolling down the streets when she spotted Sai sitting on a bench. She happily quickened her pace and slid up next to him on the bench, invading his space. He was drawing, of course, and Saryie was excited to see what it was.

"Abstract art?" Saryie questioned.

Sai nodded, stopping for a moment, readjusting his arm. Saryie sat beside him, nearly leaning onto his shoulder to watch him. Sai didn't comment on her invasion of space but allowed it as he continued drawing.

Saryie watched him for a while.

"You're so good at it," Saryie commented

"I'm not drawing anything," Sai deflected.

Saryie laughed. "Even your nothing looks amazing."

Sai smiled at the compliment and saw through the corner of his eye how Saryie's lips pursed.

"You have something on your mind," Sai stated, evenly.

Saryie eyed Sai warily, her lips still pursed before she decided to spill what was on her mind.

"I know you don't sell any of your work… but… would you draw something for me?" Saryie asked, hesitantly.

Sai stopped to look her in the eye, his face blank. "You want to commission me?" Sai clarified.

Saryie nodded, with a light smile. "My room could use a bit more of your colorful art," Saryie stated.

"What is it that you want me to draw for you?" Sai questioned, vaguely curious.

"A sunset with a deer," Saryie answered, her voice steady.

Sai went back to his drawing.

"Why a deer?"

"Hmm… I don't know… first thing I thought of." Saryie commented. "You can do it whenever you like… and can give it to me whenever you're done. It not like there's a strict deadline, but I do want you to draw it from your heart."

Sai nodded, as his mind scrambled for ideas. His concentration lacking in the current piece he was working on.

Saryie watched him silently for a while, leaning on his shoulder, her body pressed to the side of his. It wasn't until an hour had passed that Saryie glanced up from her position at the sun. She sighed, as she began to get up.

Sai watched her get up, eyeing her curiously.

"I got to head to my family's farm now," Saryie stated stretching out her arms.

Sai slightly missed the pressure that sat beside him as he sketched. He nodded his head in understanding at Saryie, figuring she was departing soon.

Saryie bit her lip as she looked down at Sai.

"Do you wanna come with?... I'm just going to be helping out with chores… you don't have too!... but if you don't have anything else planned you can… but if not, it's cool," Saryie mumbled, spitting out the words rushed as she waited for his answer.

Sai stared blankly back up her, before smiling lightly. "I don't see why not. I will accompany you," Sai agreed as he started placing his notebook and pencils away in his bag.

Saryie's face brightened as she waited for Sai to pick himself up. They stopped at his place to put away his art tools and sketch pad. Once that was done, they headed to Konoha's gates and checked out of the Village.

They made their way a little outside the Village before coming across the Hatake's farm. There was a shabby little house and a small shed with a cattle pen in the backyard and few acres of land off to each side of the house. Saryie landed with Sai following in tow at the front the property.

There was a woman that stood outside with the front door wide open in front of a laundry line, hanging up damp laundry that was nestled in a basket on a chair. The woman had light brown hair and bangs hovering over her face wearing a maroon dress and grey apron. Her eyebrows were drawn down, barely looking over her shoulder to spy Saryie.

"Has it already been that long in the year?" the woman commented, dryly.

"Yup! I'm here to help!" Saryie chimed.

"Hn."

The woman turned slightly as she grabbed a new item from the basket, taking a glance at Sai.

"You brought a friend?" the woman questioned, her tone unwelcoming.

"Yes. Mom, this is Sai. Sai this is my mother, Tsubaki," Saryie introduced, lightly with a tight smile.

Saryie's mom averted her eyes as she went to hang up another clothing item, her back facing them.

"I suppose I should assume you're a shinobi as well," Tsubaki mentioned, offhandedly.

"Yes, I am mam'" Sai answered.

"What a pity," Saryie's mom commented. "Saryie, your father is out in the market; he plans on getting the acres planted today. I suppose you can help your brother plant crops in the field, he's working out on acre one."

"Alright, I'm on it," Saryie spoke, determined.

Saryie motioned Sai to follow her as she grabbed a bag of seeds from beside the shed and headed over to the field her brother was working on.

"Hope you don't mind getting a little dirty," Saryie smiled, her voice light as if the conversation with her mom never happened.

"There's not a problem," Sai mentioned with ease, returning the smile. He was taking in the situation and gathering every detail he could, trying to decipher for himself about Saryie's home life.

Sai followed Saryie as she led the way. They soon came to the field, her brother was planting crops on, his feet were buried in the mud as he had his hand's stretched in front of him in the mud, planting seeds. He was of average height for a boy that was 12 years old. He had light brown hair and coal black eyes. He wore a beanie cap to which is hair was matted to his forehead. He was in typical shorts and a grey tee-shirt.

"Hey, lil bro!" Saryie called out.

The boy stopped for a moment, turning around. His face immediately brightened as he grinned.

"Hey Saryie! I'm surprised to see you, thought you had a mission," the boy claimed, his voice still high pitched as he soon eyed Sai. "You brought a friend?"

"Yea, Nao this is Sai. Sai meet my little brother Nao," Saryie stated, introducing them.

"Greetings," Sai stated with a wave.

"Hello," Nao replied with a curious look to his sister.

Saryie acted oblivious to her brother's curious eyes as her and Sai got started on their lot of the field. They started to plant the crops getting their feet and hands covered in mud.

Nao began to start rolling out questions about Saryie's latest missions and about how her teammates were. Saryie told Nao about her most recent mission and the success of it. She mostly drew out all the details of the battles and Nao seemed very interested in it. He was entranced like children was from a story book.

After they got done talking about Saryie's mission, he seemed to ramble about random things. He talked about current customers at the market and about how he was doing in school. He talked about his friends he had at his own age.

Sai picked up on a few things as Nao and Saryie talked. One was that Nao could ramble and liked to talk as much as Saryie does. Two, Nao seemed happy and go-lucky type of kid. Lastly, the two never once mentioned their parents or Nao's home life.

"So then, Betty the cow escaped from her pen and I ended up trying to track her down. Found her with her foot caught in a log, can you believe that?" Nao described to his sister with a laugh.

Saryie snickered at her brother's tale. They were almost done planting all the crops on this field.

"It does sound like Betty," Saryie commented.

A moment of silence passed between them before Nao straightened up his posture.

"Finally done," Nao claimed, pleased with himself, wiping the sweat from his brow.

Saryie straightened up slowly too, holding something in her hand. "Looks good little bro, except you got a little something right there," Saryie pointed, holding back a smile.

Nao looked down at himself in confusion. "Where?"

Splat!

Nao was taken by surprise as now his once cleaned shirt contained big splash of mud on it. Nao looked up at his sister's playful face. His eyes narrowed as he grabbed some mud as well. The game was on. Saryie stuck out her tongue as Nao threw the mud ball but it missed her.

They started a mud ball fight, laughing as they both got dirty. Saryie was the least dirty, having the skills to be able to dodge her brothers throws but then… the mud ball fight came to a halt as one astray mud ball hit Sai right in the chest.

Saryie looked at him biting her lip trying to hold back her laugh. Nao stared wide eyed at Sai, unsure what to do. Sai seemed to contemplate the meaning of this play fight.

"Is this supposed to be funny?" Sai asked, blankly, not mad.

"Only if you laugh," Saryie commented, with a hint of a giggle in her voice turning to look back at Nao.

Sai seemed to stare at the mud on his shirt for a while, until he too grabbed some mud. He then threw the mud right at the back of Saryie's head, it landing with precise accuracy.

Saryie was caught by surprise, turning back to Sai.

"I'm sure it's only fitting, I repay you back," Sai stated with a smile.

Nao started busting up laughing and Saryie smirked. The mud fight was back on as all three joined in trying to throw mud at each other. They all got dirty quickly as mud flew everywhere as laughter filled the air.

"What is going on?"

All three stopped as Tsubaki's voice rang through the air, her face set in a firm frown.

"Nothing mom, we we're just having some fun," Nao deflected, his face instantly losing its cheer.

Tsubaki rolled her eyes, before giving a tight smile to Nao.

"Alright, Nao go clean yourself up. You still have to fetch fresh water for the cattle," Tsubaki mentioned, her eyes drifting to Saryie and Sai.

Nao seemed annoyed with his mother as he got out of the muddy field. He took a look back at Saryie before he left though.

"Bye, sis. I'll see you next time," Nao tried to say optimistically with a smile before heading to the house.

Tsubaki stood, waiting for Nao to be out of ear range before speaking to Saryie.

"I'm glad you could come and make a mess of things today, Saryie," Tsubaki stated, with the hint of displeasure in her voice.

"Mom, it's not that big of a deal. All the seeds are planted," Saryie mentioned, eyeing her mom.

"Hn." Tsubaki took a glance around at the field and the empty baskets that use to hold the seeds. Her eyes took a long look at Saryie, almost as if she was going to argue further but her eyes next glanced at Sai.

"Well thanks for your help today, I'm sure we'll see you soon," Tsubaki stated, her eyes drifting back to Saryie, scowling before turning briskly back to the house.

Saryie sighed a bit before turning to Sai, with a smile on her face.

"Let's go get cleaned up too. I know of a river close by so that way we won't have to return to the Village all dirty," Saryie spoke, her voice cheery.

Sai nodded as he followed her out of the field and through the trees to a river.

It didn't take them long to get there. Once they were there Saryie bashfully glanced at Sai before turning slightly away as she removed her shorts and shirt, leaving her in her bra and underwear. She then stepped into the knee deep river and started washing off her legs.

Sai didn't really pay attention to the way Saryie undressed but instead stripped himself of his shirt and pants, as he stayed in his underwear too. He stepped into the water and started cleaning off his shirt along with his arms and chest.

Saryie's blushed had ceased until she glanced at Sai and it came back again. She kept her eyes averted from his figure as she continued to take the mud off herself and clothes.

Sai had stolen a glance at Saryie as well, noticing she was unusually quiet. His eyes took in her figure, seemingly oblivious to the content of the situation. He watched her untie her hair from her ponytail and it falling all around her as she began washing the mud out of her hair.

Once they were all clean, they set aside their clothes on a boulder so they could dry while they sat at the bank of the river a good arm distance apart.

Saryie blush had ceased again and she was thankful as she ringed out some of the water from her hair.

"Your mother has a distain for shinobis," Sai stated, at he directed his eyes to Saryie.

Saryie's mouth twitch slight down in a frown. "Yea, she does."

"May I ask why?"

Saryie took a moment, looking out into the water. "I'm not really sure why… but I know it has something to do with my grandpa, her dad… He was a shinobi from what I heard. He died in battle during the third great ninja war. I don't think it was his death though that made my mom not like ninjas, but… the fact that he was hardly home; always on missions and she didn't like living with the uncertainty if he would come back or not…"

"Until that is when he finally didn't come back from the war. I don't know, I'm not sure if that's the reason. She wanted a simple life. A civilian life. Its why she married my dad, a farmer. Its why my families' farm is outside the Village. She wants to remove herself from the ninja world. That's why she was against me being a ninja. She would rather not have a daughter, than have a dead one," Saryie explained, solemnly.

Sai stared evenly at her, analyzing her face. "I understand. What of your father though? What does he think of a ninja?"

Saryie smiled a bit. "He's not completely for it, but he's not against it either. He just doesn't want to see me get hurt; which is understandable, but he knew it was something I wanted to pursue. He was hesitant, of course, though, since his uncle committed suicide, Kakashi's dad. He just doesn't fight my mother's opinion much. If it wasn't for him I might not have ever been enrolled into the academy," Saryie spoke softly.

"I see, so your father let you get disowned by your mother," Sai stated, bluntly, putting some pieces together.

"To some extent yes… but he was also hoping I would fail out of the academy. He didn't really want me to be a ninja either," Saryie commented, moving a hair out of her face.

"You and your brother seem to be on good terms though," Sai mentioned.

"Yea… he's the only one to accept my lifestyle. He thinks it's amazing. My mother, of course, doesn't like me hanging around him too much. She's afraid I'll influence him to become a ninja as well," Saryie stated, honestly.

"I could tell by the way your mother wanted to shoo him away from you," Sai casually said.

Saryie nodded.

"But enough with the sad stuff, do you wanna get a bite to eat and then go train?" Saryie asked, a smile spreading over her face.

Sai smiled back at her. "Sure."

They let the depressing topics go for now, as they put back on their dry clothes and headed back to the village to eat and train.

* * *

 **Wooo! More bonding. I'm proud of this chapter. Hoped you liked it too.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. I do own Saryie, Azumi, and Michi.**


	23. Chapter 23

**Alright, time for a new mission. Hope you're ready for it. I'm hoping it all makes sense. Enjoy!**

* * *

 **Stirring Emotions**

Chapter 23

Saryie was in a dead sleep when she felt something nudging her face. Annoyed, she turned over to sleep some more by burying her face in her pillow. She barely registered hearing a familiar sigh as her mind was drifting in-between unconsciousness and consciousness.

Suddenly, she felt a light pressure on her sides that woke her out of her dead sleep. She squirmed and giggled as she finally woke up and the light feathery touch leaving her. She took a glance around her room, seeing nothing out of the ordinary, except when her eyes landed on her window.

"Hey there."

Saryie's eyes narrowed at Kakashi casually leaning against her window sill, knowing he let himself in through there.

"What do you want, Kakashi?" she asked, a little peeved at being awoken at 7 in the morning.

"To be fair, I was knocking at your door for a very long time before I decided to let myself in to give you a personal wake-up call," Kakashi defected, casually, reading the tone of Saryie's voice.

Saryie grunted in annoyance.

"Anyway, I came to collect you. The Hokage wants to see us for a mission," Kakashi addressed.

"A mission?!" Saryie asked, hopping right out of bed but then stopping short. "With you?"

"Yes, the one and only," Kakashi stated with a smirk under his mask.

Saryie groaned.

Kakashi raised an eyebrow. "Well if you're not interested in this B-rank mission, I can always tell Tsunade to assign you a D-rank one instead," Kakashi trailed off.

"NO!" Saryie shouted as she continued to get up. "I'll be right out and don't you dare tell Tsunade that," Saryie remarked, firmly.

"You have five minutes," Kakashi stated as he hopped out the window.

"DON'T RUSH ME! NO ONE RUSHES YOU," Saryie shouted as she got ready.

Once she put on her uniform and did her morning routine, she met up with Kakashi outside. He was casually reading his book when she showed up and they headed to the Hokage's office.

"So what kind of mission are we going on?" Saryie asked, her curiosity peaking.

"I don't know, that's the point of going to the Hokage's office," Kakashi stated with a light tone as he flipped the page of his book.

Once they were there, they entered the Hokage's office, noticing two familiar faces.

"Heyyyy, what you know. Look what the cat dragged in," Kiba mentioned, teasing with a smirk at Saryie as Akamaru barked.

"Ugh not you," Saryie muttered as she glared at him, before her eyes shifted over to their other teammate in this mission, Sai. Saryie gave him a small smile, his face blank as Saryie and Kakashi approached Tsunade's desk.

"Kakashi, you're late," Tsunade stated.

"Sorry about that. However, I'm not as late as I usually am," Kakashi stated, apologetically.

"Alright, listen up. I'm giving you a mission that resides in the Land of Grass. There have been reports of missing women in the area. The Land of Grass has requested for us to figure out why. Your mission is to find these missing women and stop whoever is in incarcerating them. Understood?" Tsunade asked, eyeing the team.

Everyone nodded their heads.

"There is one more thing. This mission is to remain secretive. No one can know you're ninja. You'll have to go undercover in order to find where these missing women went. The Land of Grass will be suspicious of ninja and if they are tipped off about your mission, they may pack up and leave before we find any clue about where the missing women have gone," Tsunade spoke, her eyes narrowed and hands folded in front of her face.

"How are we supposed to find these girls if we're not supposed to draw attention to our mission?" Saryie questioned, an eyebrow raised.

"I'm glad you asked. The missing women reports all have been brown haired and small frame civilian women," Tsunade stated.

"Wait…. Don't tell me, I've only been assigned this mission to be bait?!" Saryie exclaimed, her voice raised.

"The only way to find where these women have disappeared to is to get someone on the inside that can handle themselves. I know you are more than capable handling yourself Saryie in that type of situation," Tsunade affirmed.

Saryie's eyes hardened as she nodded. She knew what Tsunade was talking about. She was definitely capable of handling herself in a captured situation. Not many of the other rookie nine could say the same. Sai glanced out of the corner of his eye at Saryie, noticing her firm line of her mouth as Tsunade continued.

"Kakashi will be your team captain," Tsunade directed.

"Another thing, there is currently a festival being held in the Land of Grass. A perfect opportunity for travelers to be visiting the village and not draw attention. So, be sure to blend in," Shizune offered, politely.

"No need to worry," Kakashi stated as he smiled under his mask.

"Alright, dismissed," Tsunade called as the team bowed and left.

The team, after gathering supplies for the trip, met at Konoha's gates.

"Hey Saryie," Kiba called, drawing Saryie's attention. He had noticed her go quiet in the Hokage's office after finding out she was going to be bait. Kiba smirked as he threw an arm around Saryie's shoulder.

"Don't sweat being bait, just know that when you get captured, I can find your stench anywhere," Kiba spoke confidently wanting to get a rise out of her.

Saryie pushed his arm off of her. "Heh, I'm not worried," Saryie stated, confident, as she felt somebody's breath over her shoulder. She turned her head quickly to see Sai, taking a whiff of her.

Saryie blushed as she stepped back, knowing Sai was trying to smell her.

"Saryie does not stink," Sai stated bluntly, looking straight at Kiba.

Kiba's eye twitched, before his eyes gleamed in amusement before laughing.

"You're forgetting I have a sharper nose, Sai. Her smell is heavily dense aroma that burns my nostrils," Kiba mocked, with a laugh.

"Oh shut up I don't smell! If anyone smells, it's you!" Saryie countered, her voice raised.

Sai didn't understand what Kiba was talking about, Saryie smelled fine. Almost like berries and vanilla. Sai wondered if her scent to Kiba was so strong that it hurt to breathe her in. Sai wasn't sure, as he listened to the two banter yelling insults at each other.

Kakashi was mentally sighing as he watched the three. It was obvious to him that Kiba was lying. Kakashi's nose was pretty sharp too and there was no way that Saryie stinked, it was just what Kiba liked to say. He thought it was amusing when Sai tried to find out for himself. It seems Sai was still confused on the matter. Kakashi wondered if the three were going to be like this the whole mission. He certainly hoped not since they're supposed to blend in.

"Alright listen up," Kakashi called for their attention.

Kiba and Saryie had stopped fighting to listen up as Sai turned his gaze to Kakashi.

"Since there is a festival in the Land of Grass, its best for us to look and act like travelers," Kakashi emphasized, mostly staring at Kiba and Saryie. "In order to look the part, me and Sai will be traveling artisans that are trying to sell our paintings at the festivals. This will be easy to fool others due to Sai's artistic ability," Kakashi explained as Sai gave a curt nod. Kakashi's eye then glanced over at Kiba and Saryie. "As for you two… you will just be a traveling pair of husband and wife who came to see the festivities of the festival," Kakashi drawled out.

"WHAT?!" Saryie and Kiba both shouted out.

"We have pretend to be a couple?" Saryie questioned, not happy.

"Yes, just for this mission," Kakashi stated, with a light sigh.

"Ughhhh," Saryie groaned.

Kiba slung his arm back over Saryie. "Don't worry Hun, I'll be good to you," Kiba teased.

"Get off me," Saryie muttered as she once again removed herself from Kiba's arm, her eyes glancing quickly to Sai.

Sai seemed oblivious to the situation, to which Saryie was a bit relieved. At least this mission wouldn't get awkward for her.

After seeing everyone's resolve, Kakashi headed out with the rest of the team falling behind him. It only took them two days to get to the Land of Grass. They had stopped along the way to take breaks but they didn't take any time to fully rest. Kakashi had stated they could rest when they get to a village-inn.

Before they had arrived at the village, they had discarded their ninja attire and dressed in civilian clothes to blend in. Kakashi having to wear a large turtle neck to cover his lower face and wearing bandaged over his sharingan eye. They all had to look the part as civilians. Even Kiba turned Akamaru into a clone of himself but slightly different. Akamaru resembled Kiba with his hair and body structure, but Kiba made Akamaru's eyes brown and hair longer. It was to make Akamaru look like Kiba's brother because most inns don't allow pets and normally civilians don't carry big dogs with them.

When they got to the inn, Kakashi had instructed Kiba and Saryie to go in first and get some rest. Kakashi said him and Sai were going to get a feel for the village in the meantime, before the festival was supposed to being that night. They would then check into the village-inn later after they did some reconnaissance. Kakashi also didn't forget to mention that Saryie needed to act like she like Kiba to which Saryie stuck out her tongue and muttered that first she was bait and now she has to like Kiba.

Kiba, Saryie, and Akamaru soon check-in to the village-inn, receiving a key to the room with two beds. The receptionist asked about them. Kiba put on the charm as he told the lady about how his wife really wanted to go to the festival and how he gave in like a good husband should. Saryie smiled as the lady told her, she has a very considerate husband. Saryie said she knew that she really felt lucky with a tight smile. The lady's eyes soon turned to Akamaru which Kiba quickly explain was his brother that was traveling with them and unfortunately is mute. The lady seemed sympathetic as she told them to enjoy their stay.

Once they got to the room, Saryie jumped on the bed and let out a huge sigh. Kiba snickered as he locked the door and let the transformation jutsu on Akamaru go so that his dog could relax as well. Kiba kicked off his shoes before laying down on the opposite bed of Saryie.

"Man, it feels so good to take a rest," Saryie commented.

"Heh," Kiba snickered. "You sound like your teammate Michi now," Kiba mentioned.

"Ha!" Saryie laughed as she turned onto her side. "Don't worry, I'll be ready for the mission tonight."

Saryie's mind drifted back to old memories as she tried to rest. She thought back to her days in the academy when she first met Kiba. She had been struggling with shuriken jutsu in the courtyard of the school when Kiba had come up to her. He had first called her out as the new kid, mocking her attempt at the jutsu she was performing, Saryie had fell to the floor after losing her balance. Saryie at that age was quick to defend herself, standing up quick to get in Kiba's face. Kiba had grew red but glared back and told her to get out of his face that's she smelled. Saryie glared and said she could beat him in a fight. At that age, they didn't know a lot of jutsu so the fight would have just been a fist fight. Kiba remarked he wouldn't hit a girl, but he challenged her to a race.

They had raced and Saryie had won by a second but Kiba refused to admit it. It was then that Saryie was going to start yelling at him, but then her attention was diverted to Akamaru who sprung up from Kiba's coat. Saryie's mood shifted as her attention went to the puppy and started petting it. She cooed at the dog and Kiba's hostile exterior began to melt as he watched Saryie pet his dog. It was then that they began talking about Akamaru and about how he came from the Inuzuka clan.

Saryie smiled fondly in her state of unconsciousness. Kiba's dog was the only thing she liked about him back in the day. Akamaru was so cute and tiny back then, his fur was incredibly soft. Kiba and her often raced each other in the academy. Kiba wanted to beat her and prove that he was the fastest between them. He was the fastest out of the rest of the kids in their class like Naruto, Choji, Shikamaru, and two other boys. Kiba just couldn't face losing to a girl so he just kept challenging her.

It was a few hours later, when rapping came from their door. Saryie who was barely asleep woke up easily, and sat up rubbing sleep form her eyes. Kiba took precautions as he got up, checking out the peep hole. He spied Kakashi and Sai outside the door. He let them in quickly.

Kakashi came to stand in front of the two as Sai stood beside him. It wasn't until Kiba had closed and lock the door and sat back down on the bed that Kakashi had revealed the intel he gathered.

"This is definitely the spot, where numerous women have been disappearing. There's an air around the people here that are cautious of this upcoming festival. I was able to probe a few villagers for information about the town. It seems it's not unusual for a man to find a lady of the night here. However, many do not know who supplies these women and how they are exchanged," Kakashi informed.

Saryie remained quiet, taking the information in. She felt her stomach twist in disgust and righteous anger.

"Also from what I gathered around town, many of the residents do not mention the missing women," Sai began, talking evenly. "I had observed and spied on numerous occasions hushed whispers of families missing their loved ones. I had heard from one older lady talking to child that the child's mother had gone away in order to help them."

Kakashi nodded. "Right, its most likely were dealing with an organized crime unit here in this village. The only way we'll be able to discover its whereabouts and who is behind this is to have someone on the inside. Unfortunately, so, that will have to be you Saryie," Kakashi mentioned, his eye traveling to her.

"I understand," Saryie stated evenly, determined.

"Your goal is to get on the inside and find where these missing women are and gather as much intel as you can about the organization. We'll keep in contact with you, with this," Kakashi mentioned before pulling out a transmitting and receiving device. "Once you are captured, we'll keep track of your whereabouts through your scent and we'll wait to make our move until we find out who is in charge. Sai and I will take reconnaissance of the hideout before we move in. Hopefully this will all go smoothly and we won't be matched up with any strong opponents," Kakashi stated.

Saryie took the transmitting device from Kakashi's hands. Her eyes were narrowed, she was going to help find these women and she was going to kick whoever's butt it was who was behind this.

* * *

 **Well this mission getting a bit dark… I wont get graphic about the details of the mission but you can kind of get the gist of the type of crime organization there suppose to take down. Stay tune! This will be a long mission.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. I own Saryie, Azumi and Michi.**


	24. Chapter 24

**Alright let's get this mission on the road to build some tension. Also, btw I posted a new pic on my deviantart simplyplain42 of Saryie and Sai, if you care to take a look of it. Alright, enjoy the chapter.**

* * *

 **Stirring Emotions**

Chapter 24

"We gotta hold hands."

"What?" Saryie looked bewildered at Kiba as they stood in their hotel room about to leave to the festival.

Kakashi and Sai, after going through the details of the mission and planning, had retired back to their own room to get some rest before the festival. It was eight o'clock at night and the street outside was buzzing with music and people. It was time to start their mission, Saryie knew and she partially forgot how she had to pretend to be Kiba's wife.

They were both dressed in kimonos that were typically worn by civilians to these celebrations. They had to look the part and blend in. Saryie's hair was down and neatly styled. She missed wearing her ninja gear and headband but it was important for this mission. She had stashed the transmitting device under her kimono in her shorts. She felt vulnerable without any weapons and wasn't too happy about being bait. She was going to have to attract the unwanted attention of the men behind these kidnappings. She wasn't too sure how they were going to do so.

Kakashi had said that the women who tend to went missing were either travelers or outcasts of the village already. The only thing in common among them was their petite bodies and brown hair. Saryie was definitely short and had brown hair. She would just have to figure out whose attention she had to catch. She wondered how these men could get away with kidnapping women so easily. She wondered what their tactic was.

It was fairly odd how many women have already gone missing before the village had sent word to the Hidden Leaf to find them. Many of the villagers did not acknowledge the missing women epidemic that has been happening. The village had been so hush hush about it that Saryie was curious as to why. The village was visited by many array of travelers that Saryie was surprised that the village wasn't suffering from the news of the missing women. People came here to gamble, drink and be merry it seems. This festival was an example of that.

Kiba seemed a little more relaxed about the situation, but Saryie had no doubt because he had his ninja gear on underneath his fitted attire. Kiba had put a transformation jutsu on Akamaru once again as they were about to leave for the night.

"We're supposed to be a couple, you can't act distant from me," Kiba stated, holding out his hand.

"What if I am a disgruntled wife, mad at her husband for bringing me here to this crazy festival," Saryie argued, reluctant.

"That's not the story I shared with the inn lady, now is it? Come on, don't make this more difficult than it has to be. It's not like I have cooties," Kiba spoke, annoyed.

"You might not have cooties, but you might have ticks," Saryie retorted, with a sigh as she placed her hand in Kiba's.

"Hey! Me and Akamaru are tick free as of last month," Kiba defended, quickly but chuckled as Saryie rolled her eyes.

Akamaru barked happily to which the two both shushed him as they headed out to the festival, putting on their fake persona as a happy couple. Akamaru followed steadily behind them but not too suspicious looking. Kiba led the way into the night and Saryie tried to play her part to the best of her abilities.

The streets were packed with civilians. There was music in the air and the aroma of food almost spilling out from every vending booth. It made Saryie unusually hungry. There were pretty artisan crafts being displayed such as masks, fans, jewelry, and umbrellas.

Kiba and Saryie kept their eye out for anything suspicious as they visited almost every booth. They wanted to get a feel for the area as Kiba brightly talked about their made-up life and love story to most sales people. Saryie soon forgot about their hand holding as it grew later into the night. They hadn't spotted any abnormal folks amongst the crowd of the festival, which concerned Saryie.

Two hours had passed as Kiba and Saryie wounded up at a vending booth that Kakashi was at. He was acting as a very ecstatic seller of fine art as Sai stood off to the side, making caricatures of paying customers. Kiba's eyes locked with Kakashi's and shook his head. Kakashi understood the signal and continued on boasting about a particular art piece. He pointed to people in the crowd trying to get their attention.

Saryie's eyes scanned the crowd as Kiba once again engaged in a conversation with a man who was trying to sell colorful fans.

Saryie's eyes caught onto something as she saw a middle age man standing by his lonesome near the shadows. What caught her attention was his demeanor. He was scoping the crowd out, much like a predator. She kept her eye on him as Kiba was bickering with the sales person. She followed the man's line of site and saw a female in a yellow kimono by herself shopping at the silk scarfs booths.

Saryie's eyes went back to the man and noticed he was looking away from the woman but instead at two other men in the crowd. Saryie had a gut feeling, these were the men they were after.

Saryie tugged on Kiba's hand, gaining his attention. Kiba quickly left the sales person in midsentence as Saryie pulled Kiba close. It looked as if a lover's embrace were taking place, but while Saryie had Kiba close to her, she whispered in his ear.

"Take a look at the man in the black shirt at the corner of the crab leg booth," Saryie whispered, smiling, her arms wrapped around Kiba's shoulders, her breath tickling his ear. From an outsider's perspective, she made it look like she was whispering loving things to him.

Kiba's eyes trained onto the man Saryie suspected, before drifting his eyes away. He too broke into a sideways smile, but his eyes remained serious as he stared down at Saryie's shoulders, his arms wrapped around her back.

"I see him. Do you think he's the one?" Kiba asked, whispering back.

"I think he's part of the group we're looking for. I think we need to split up. They're not going to come after me if you're at my side the whole time," Saryie stated, determined. "I am going to have to get his attention."

Kiba's arms around her tightened, subconsciously. "Are you sure?" Kiba asked as his eyes drifted back to the man, his resolve wavering.

"I'll be fine. You can track my scent anywhere, right?"

"Yes," Kiba answered, confident.

"Then I'll be alright. I'll contact you in 30 minutes if nothing happens. I'll see you soon," Saryie whispered breaking away from the embrace with Kiba.

Saryie's eyes caught with Kakashi's curious look, before nodding her head curtly as she turned to walk away, her eyes catching a glimpse of Sai's steady gaze as well.

Saryie was off into the crowd, walking steadily. She didn't want to seem suspicious. She gazed at the lights acting as if amused with her surroundings, even though she was really focusing on the location of the man at the crab shack, but he happened to disappear. She wandered around the area near where the man by the crab shack was, she didn't know if she attracted his attention or not, but she tried to stay aware of her surroundings.

She next headed over to where she saw that woman in the yellow kimono admire the scarfs. She no longer could find the women with the yellow kimono and Saryie tried to keep her eyes on the lookout for any one of the men she saw earlier.

"This one would match your eyes."

Saryie attention snapped to the salesperson who displayed a pretty blue scarf in his hands. Saryie smiled at the man and politely declined.

"Awe, such a pretty woman should have a pretty garment to accentuate their eyes," the sales person cooed.

"Thank you, but I was just browsing," Saryie spoke, gently as she moved to make her way out of the booth.

She traveled a little further up the street of the fair, acting shy and naive as she passed by strangers. As soon as she thought she saw the man from the crab shack, her attention was diverted as she felt a tug on her kimono.

Saryie's eyes looked down, wide-eyed as she saw a child, on the brink of tears. He couldn't be more than 5 years old. He had shaggy blond hair and had on a dirty kimono. Saryie bent down to the boy's height, concerned.

"What's wrong dear?" Saryie asked, softly.

"I don't know where my momma is," the child spoke close to sobs.

Saryie instantly wondered if this child belonged to the woman in the yellow kimono. "Oh, it'll be ok. How about I help you look for her. Where did you last see her at?" Saryie asked, concerned.

The child took her hand as the boy wiped at the tears in his eyes. "I'll show you," he whimpered.

Saryie followed the child, hoping to help him find his mom.

When the child led them away from the crowd of the festival and to a dim lit alleyway, warning bells went off in Saryie's head.

"Your mother came over here?" Saryie questioned, confused.

The little boy nodded and tugged her hand some more to make her come into the alleyway. The sounds of the festival drowning out her voice. Saryie stepped cautiously into the alleyway.

The boy let go of her hand and instantaneously, Saryie was grabbed by two men. Saryie was about to scream out of surprise when she was gagged. Saryie began to struggle as a bag was placed over her head and the men that grabbed her picked her up and she was carried away.

Saryie began murmuring curse words and was struggling ruthlessly, but she had to remind herself to not show her full strength that she was here on a mission. Saryie now saw that the little boy was just a mere tactic by these men. It was to play into the nurturing side of women in order for them to let their guards down. It was a cruel ploy.

Saryie could hear a heavy door opening and they descended some steps. Amidst her struggles she knew she had to leave a clue. She had left her shoe at the scene of her capture when she was aimlessly struggling against the men. She knew Kiba would find it when the team went searching for her. For now, she had to bid time and save her strength.

Saryie was placed on the floor and nudged to move forward. She fought back and received a smack to the head to which she growled.

"Quit struggling," one man ordered from her side.

Saryie did as she was told, mostly annoyed as they shoved her forward. The ground was rough on her bare feet. The sounds, the feeling in the air, and the smell made her think she was in some sort of a cave.

When they stopped wandering through the many twist and turns, the bag was lifted from her head. Saryie's was right; they were in a cave. It must be underground to the village, she quickly speculated. She took a sharp look around from the jail cell she was facing. The walls were aligned with similar cells strapped with metal bars and each cell occupying 2 to 3 women with each cell acquainted with dim candle light.

Saryie was soon shoved into the cell that lay open to her before it was closed and locked harshly. The men scoffed as they told her to get cozy before leaving. Saryie cursed inwardly at the men. Pitiful.

Her attention soon caught site of the whimpering of a woman in a yellow kimono. The one from the festival Saryie had seen before. Saryie's suspicions were confirmed that she was in the right place after all as she began taking in every detail of the cave and everything that she could see outside her cell.

She caught the attention of another captive in the opposite cell on the other side of the room.

"Hey you! What is this?" Saryie asked, loudly

"Shushhh… we're not supposed to talk. If we're too loud, they're going to come back… and punish us," the girl replied, her eyes narrowed, looking down the hallway.

The cave was quiet except for the consistent sounds of whimpering coming from Saryie's cell mate.,

"Just keep your head down and you might survive," the girl warned, looking anxious.

"How long have to been stuck down here?" Saryie asked, curious, speaking quietly.

"I don't know, is it still spring?" the girl questioned.

"No its fall," Saryie answered.

"Then that's how long it's been, now just do as your told and don't fight them or it'll be worse for you," the girl whispered.

"What do they do to us here?" Saryie asked, eyes narrowed.

The girl looked hesitantly around, biting her lip.

"A bit of everything," the girl answered, quietly, eyeing Saryie.

"What does that mean?"

"Sometimes we clean, sometimes we cook, sometimes we're rented out, sometimes we're traded in, other times we're sold," the girl spoke, monotone.

The woman in the yellow kimono wailed harder at that.

"WHO THE HELL IS MAKING ALL THAT DAMN NOISE?" a man with brown hair and a crowbar came out of the hallway, looking enraged. Two other men followed him, looking just as pasty as him.

The girl Saryie was talking to cowered back into her cell, diming her light. The pasty man's eyes fixated on the woman in Saryie's cell that wouldn't stop sobbing. Saryie didn't flinch as the man hit his crowbar against the cell.

"SHUT UP, or I'll make you shut up," the man yelled at the woman in yellow. The threat did not help calm the nerves of the woman in yellow as she tried to whimper softer. The man huffed about to turn back when his gaze locked onto Saryie's solid stare.

"Whatcha looking at, sweetheart?" the man remarked a twitch in his mouth.

Saryie didn't answer as she looked at the man with loathing.

The man stuck his arm into the cell grabbing Saryie by her kimono and bringing her to the cell. "I said… whatcha looking at? Answer when spoken to."

Saryie sneered as she gritted her teeth as she fought her instincts. "I don't know what I'm looking at but I'm definitely not looking at a man," Saryie remarked, a slight smirk gracing her face.

The man enraged forced her closer to the bars, bring his face to hers. "I'll show you I'm a man, sweetheart if you don't believe me."

Saryie's face showed disgust and as her stomach twisted in anger.

"Let her go, Theo" a clam voice leveled out.

The man holding Saryie let go of her kimono as they both turned to the new voice.

Saryie recognized the man in the black shirt as the man that stood by the crab shack. He was a lot taller than she thought he was and musclier too. He had a square jaw and light colored hair, his eyes seemingly small and close together for his face but he was rather handsome in beauty standards.

"You know the boss doesn't like anyone touching the new merchandise till he gets a good look at them," the man stated, his eyes gazing over Saryie and her cell mate.

"Hn, I was just trying to keep the chatter and wailing to a minimum, Rye. I just had to rough up this one a bit. The boss is going have his hands full. She a fighter, I can tell," Theo mentioned as he curtly pointed at Saryie.

"We'll let him deal with it when he meets her. He tends to break in all the new merchandise," Rye commented, evenly unfazed. "As for the wailing women, leave it be. They'll stop eventually."

"Yes, sir," Theo admitted, begrudgingly.

Saryie could tell that Theo was use to having the power down here to inflict order for his own amusement on the women. She could tell by the standing of Rye that he was in higher chain of command to Theo. She wondered if Rye was the bosses right hand man to this whole operation.

"You can leave now," Rye commanded to Theo and Theo's men.

They soon left and Rye was about to depart too, but he took one last look at Saryie, studying her. Saryie avoided his gaze intentionally as she sat back on the floor. She had a feeling Rye was suspicious of her. Saryie needed to act like a civilian in this situation and not a ninja until she had confirmation on who the boss was in this organized crime.

When Rye left, Saryie took the time to look around the cave again. She consoled the woman in the yellow kimono to get her to stop crying. Saryie found out her name was Lin and the girl across the cell was Jinging. Saryie tried to keep her voice as low as she could as she talked to them both. There was another girl added to Saryie's cell by the name of Seka. She was shaking like a leaf and scared. Saryie tried to explain the situation to her and asked her how the men had captured her. Seka was captured the same way Saryie was, with the little boy as a decoy.

The night drifted on and silence fell over the cells as most of the women fell asleep. Saryie made sure there were no witnesses as she doubled-checked that Lin and Seka were asleep. Saryie drew closer to the bars of the cage, trying to peer down the cave's hallway. Most of the candle lights had went out in each cell and the only light remaining was the torch at the end of the entrance. Saryie outstretched her arms from the bars and did some hand signs.

A shadow clone of herself appeared before her outside of her cell bars. Saryie had decided to use a shadow clone of herself rather than a water clone because shadow clones were sturdier even if they took up more chakra. Quickly her shadow clone used a transformation jutsu to turn into on the Theo's henchmen she had seen earlier. The shadow clone of herself took the transmitting devise that Kakashi had given her before disappearing down the hall to do some investigating.

Saryie sat back in her cell and could only wait now as her other half went to explore the cave. The rocky and jagged surface of the cave made it difficult to fall asleep and she really didn't want to fall asleep, but she knew she was going to need some rest if she were to break out of here and kick those men's butts.

* * *

 **Part one of this mission has gone down. See part two next week, lul. I tried not to make this chapter too dark. It's just these guys are criminals and are gross, so bear with me.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, I do own Saryie, Michi, and Azumi**


	25. Chapter 25

**Well this almost wraps up the mission.**

* * *

 **Stirring Emotions**

Chapter 25

"We must hold our position and wait till we get word from Saryie," Kakashi stated coolly as he was crouched on the ground.

Kakashi, Sai, and Kiba were on the perimeter of the village they were investigating. They were posted somewhere near a secret entrance to the underground tunnels that they had discovered. They were just now waiting for Saryie's signal. It didn't take them long to figure out that Saryie was captured. Kiba picked up on her scent easily and found Saryie's missing shoe. The team did not find any other visible trace at the scene, but Kiba could smell that Saryie's scent was underground.

The team had followed Kiba's nose and they pin pointed many entrances and exits to the tunnels underground. Kakashi wanted to stay put for the night by one of the entrances and until they heard word from Saryie. Kakashi had picked an entrance that was far from the little village, knowing if the women were to disappear or anyone was trying to escape quickly, this would be the proper exit.

Kiba didn't like waiting, and it made him tense. Akamaru, who was back to his dog form, could sense Kiba's tension and tried to keep him calm. Sai wasn't sure how he felt. He understood the importance of the team being patient. He knew Saryie played a key role in this mission. She would be the ultimate player that would decide the fate of the women held captive. Sai knew it was dangerous for Saryie if she got caught. He hoped she would be alright.

He thought back to the brief glance they shared after he saw her whispering into Kiba's ear. He knew something was up. He knew she was going to go off on her own and grab the men that they were after's attention. He wasn't sure how he felt about her but knew he didn't want to see her get hurt.

"We'll get the showroom auction set up after the boss inspects the inventory."

The team froze as they heard voices transpire over the receiving device. They listened in closely to the jibber jabber of the conversation as the voices of men discussed the details of their plans and duties. Kakashi turned up the receiving device's volume, knowing Saryie was spying on the men down in the cave.

"When will the boss be in?" they heard a voice say.

"He won't arrive 'til early morning. He's too busy to leave the festivities at the festival," another replied.

"You think he'll like what we caught?"

"We better hope so if we want our cut of the dough. If he doesn't care for them, he'll slice them," a rougher man's voice commented.

"I think the new merchandise will bring in some good money, you saw that one in the yellow kimono. She looked yummy," one mentioned.

"Shut it Reni. It's not for you to decide. Plus, you have enough toys," the rough voice commented.

"What about that other one that Rye's boys snagged? She seemed feisty… but she might give us some trouble," another voice spoke to the rougher voice.

"Any toy can be broken in, we'll let the boss decide," the earlier voice spoke, unfazed.

"I want a go at her if so, she needs to learn some respect," a nasely voice chimed in.

There was snickering.

"She got your undies in a twist Theo?" Reni crackled over the device.

"No! that bitch will have it coming," Theo spoke, angry

"Don't get your undies in a bunch, Theo," Reni snickered.

"I'll flippin cut your fingers off, Reni," Theo threatened.

"Enough," a new voice cut through. "Stop jabbering and go do something useful. I want this place in top shape when the boss comes in. We have a showroom in the next couple of days, I don't need you all fooling around."

There was silence over the device as there was a slight sound of footsteps falling away.

"Why did the boss pick him as the second in command?" Theo whined, annoyed.

"Stop whining. You heard Rye's orders," one voice stated.

There was rustling and more footsteps, before the transmission turned off.

The team sat silently for a moment.

"What the hell was all that?" Kiba spoke, alarmed, not liking the looks of this scenario.

"Saryie must have cut off the transmission device. They must have been leaving where ever they were going." Kakashi stated, evenly.

"I wish they had given us more detail," Kiba commented, frustrated.

"They gave us enough. We know their operation will be heading out soon to perform this showroom of sorts. We also know their boss will be coming to inspect the inventory, which I only assume means the girls they had captured tonight," Kakashi stated.

"We also know that there are at least eight men working for this mysterious boss," Sai mentioned, eyeing Kakashi with a steady gaze.

Kakashi nodded. "Right. We need to scout out the caves, and get an idea of where everything is down there. We won't be able to invade and take down the boss until he comes to inspect the new women they captured. Saryie will have the perfect opportunity to take out the boss if we can get her free and if we can get down there," Kakashi stated.

"Sai can you get in contact with Saryie down there and find out where she is and get a scope of the hideout?" Kakashi asked, evenly as Sai nodded in response.

Sai pulled out his scroll and drew many rats.

"Ninja art. Super beast scroll."

The rats came to life and scurried down through the cave's entrance as the team waited patiently.

* * *

Saryie felt her shadow clone disperse as all the information about what her other half had seen and heard filtered through her brain. They were not going to meet the boss until morning and she hoped her team had got the news.

It wasn't long until she heard tiny feet scurrying across the floor. Saryie spied Sai's inked rat making its way across the hall. It entered into her cell and Saryie out stretched her hand and as soon as the rat made contact with Saryie's hand, it dispersed and changed into a message.

Saryie read it carefully. Her team was going to infiltrate the hideout and once there has been confirmation about who the boss is they will attack. Saryie understood and now just had to wait till morning as she briefly began to rest her eyes.

When morning came, a group of voices drifted down the tunnels, alerting Saryie that they were coming. She stayed curled into a ball, pretending to still be asleep. She was sure it was early morning already and she hoped her team was able to successfully infiltrate the hideout.

"Wakey-wakey, eggs and bac-y," Theo chuckled as he rattled his metal pipe along the bars of their cage.

Saryie heard the stirring of Lin and Seka.

Theo started messing with the lock on the cage with his many sets of keys and Saryie started to hear the women whimper. Theo finally managed to get the door open and snickered as his men grabbed Lin and Seka.

"I said rise and shine princess!" Theo claimed as he nudged his foot at Saryie and went to grab her arm.

Saryie turned swiftly and much to Theo surprised shoved a handful of dirt into his face, blinding him momentarily.

"Son of a …" Theo cried as Saryie tried to escape.

The two other men that held Lin and Seka were caught off guard as Saryie broke away from them and ran down the hall. Saryie already had a reputation of being the feisty one and she was merely testing the strength of these men to see if they were just scumbags or if they were actually ninja. Saryie could hear Theo cursing up a storm as him and his boys scrambled to chase after her.

Saryie began running in the direction that she remembered her clone traveled down last night. She made twists and turns through the dark tunnels as she heard Theo's cursing mouth behind her. Saryie ducked down a corridor and lost Theo; she smiled in victory. These guys were a bunch of idiots.

Saryie continued on her way down the hall she entered but stopped short at the wall that blocked her path. Saryie's brow came down in confusion. Last night, she could have sworn this was the hallway her clone had ventured down. Saryie shook her head confused and turned to head back out of the dead end.

"Going somewhere?"

Saryie literally jumped out of her skin, putting her on the defensive as she looked up at Rye. His eyes were narrowed. Saryie had to fight her instincts and had to remember she had to pretend to be defenseless.

"Let me go!" Saryie demand, her eyes narrowed but her voice a shook.

Rye stepped forward and Saryie ducked and tried to maneuver around him, but she was surprised by his quick reflexes as he caught her arm. He pinned her to the wall and Saryie winced at the sudden impact.

"You've been quite a hassle unlike most of the women here. The boss would love to meet you," Rye commented as he pushed up against her.

He grabbed both of her wrists and tied them together with wire in front of her. Once he was done, he backed away from her and pushed her towards the exit, having a firm grip on her neck.

Saryie followed unwillingly as Rye guided her through the tunnels, until they got to a barren room. Saryie saw Lin and Seka on their knees on the floor with their hands bounded as well. Rye pushed Saryie next to the other women, roughly.

"You little shit!" Theo crackled as he stomped over to Saryie, scowling.

He was about to grab a hold of her hair when Rye stopped him. "I found your runaway for you, now get lost. Go back to the cells and stand guard," Rye commanded.

Theo grumbled as he and his two men left the room.

Saryie and the two other women were left with Rye and his 5 men. There were only two entrances to this room, one from which they had came from and the other one they were facing was dark. They sat waiting patiently for whatever boss there was to come through that entrance.

The sound of footsteps began to echo through the dark entrance until a man of short stature and gray hair appeared. Sunglasses shielded his eyes but his face was set in hard wrinkles. Two men accompanied him from behind. The short man stepped forward into the room, his hands clasped behind his back. His mouth set in a firm line.

"Only three?" were the first words he uttered in a gravelly voice.

"Didn't want to draw more suspicion than we should," Rye commented, evenly, from behind the three girls.

The short man grunted as he stepped forward as he approached the three women kneeling on the ground. He took a long look at each of the woman, starting with the latest woman captured, Seka. He took hold of the Seka's face, brushing her hair away as she whimpered.

When he approached Lin, he did the same gesture by raising her head. Lin kept up a brave face, biting her lip not to quiver as she looked up at the ceiling.

"Very nice," the short man commented with a smirk, noticing Lin's twitching. "Lovely dress," the man commented before moving on to Saryie.

Saryie's eyes bore into the short man's face, holding her head up high. The man's rough hands grabbed her chin and turning her head from side to side, but Saryie wretched her head from his hands.

The man scoffed in amusement.

"A bit young, don't you think?" The man spoke as he made eye contact with Rye, who did not reply.

"How old are you?" the man asked Saryie.

"18," Saryie stated evenly, lying.

The man wrinkled his brow. "What a surprise," the man chuckled as he turned to retreat.

"Who are you? And what do you want with us?" Saryie demanded, with a harsh voice.

The man slowly turned back around, eyeing her. "What does it look like? This is a business and you three are the new imports," the man answered vaguely.

"And are you the one in charge of this little business? To take and capture women to make a profit?" Saryie questioned, anger drifting in her voice.

"Why yes I am, and I'm sure going to make a lot of money on you," the man replied with a snicker, turning his head away from her.

"You're a piece of utter filth. All of you are!" Saryie exclaimed without a second thought as her anger was building, but was silenced with a kick to the side from Rye.

"She's a bit feisty," Rye spoke, calmly as Saryie groaned.

The old man turned with interest back to Saryie. "Much like any toy, I'm sure it can be broken in," the old man spoke critically examining her, before eyeing Rye.

Rye nodded and quickly grabbed Saryie from off the floor by her neck.

"Such a pretty thing you are… but you know what has me a little astounded… why on earth a traveler would have such bandages on their wrist and ankle…. Along with that… why on earth would a traveler be so calm in being captured and be able to ask such logical questions?" the man hummed, with a smile as he told Rye to unwrap her bandaged arm.

They took a look at her scarred arm from her previous mission. The scars were still red in hue and stuck out noticeably from her pale skin.

"I'm afraid I don't see those scars on most civilians unless they run into the wrong people. I think you, my dear, are not what you seem," the man chimed as he walked away from Saryie and Rye.

Rye held onto Saryie with one of her arms twisted behind her back and his other at her neck.

When the old man was across the room by his two fellow men, he turned.

"Of course, it also doesn't help that Rye happened to find this, lying around," the man had displayed the transmitting device that Saryie's shadow clone had held.

Saryie eyes widened slightly. How could she be so stupid about that thing. Saryie gritted her teeth in annoyance as the man annoyingly smirked in triumph.

"I suppose you're not working alone judging by the device, but don't worry we made the appropriate arrangements…" the man mocked, his intense gaze stuck on Saryie.

"The question is what to do with you… The obvious would be to kill you… but what would be more fun is to keep you and break you and sadly… your comrades may never know what might happen to you," the man wickedly gleamed as Saryie glared, her scarred hand fisting up in anger.

"Seems odd how you can pull the strings so quickly to make a quick getaway when you have just arrived. Why even show up if you knew someone was after your organization?" Saryie questioned hotly as questions spilled form her thoughts, her eyes narrowed.

She shifted her gaze to Rye who held her, trying to think of her getaway.

Rye's lips twitched upward. "Why indeed?" he whispered in her ear.

Saryie's eyes widen in realization. The short statured man wasn't the boss. The boss was Rye… the man that was blended in within the ranks and pulled the strings in the shadows. The short man was only a show, a gimmick. Rye wasn't the right hand man but instead was the one in charge.

Saryie quickly went to make a move with her free arm and elbowed Rye in the rib. It loosened his hold for a second on her neck and she took quick advantage to knock her head back against his face. Rye wrenched the hold he had on her arm and twisted it further back, leading Saryie to kneel in pain, trying to keep her position still as to not worsen the pain.

"Clever girl."

"You're sick! You're the real boss in this slave trade. What a despicable man you must be to use a child to lure women," Saryie spitted in agony and anger.

"Well what can I say… it's a family trait," Rye commented, briefly as he smirked.

Saryie felt her insides churn in disgust. "Are you saying that child is your son?"

"He surely is, and he'll make a good shot caller soon enough," Rye stated as he saw the knowledge sink into Saryie's head.

Disgust filled Saryie's features and Rye took his eyes off her as he addressed the short man.

"You ready to abandon this place, Pa?" but Rye was caught off guard at the sight he saw.

A gasp filled the room at the sight as Rye's men stood dumbfounded.

Rye was quickly about to make a move when a smooth voice ran over his shoulder.

"I wouldn't do anything if I was you," Kakashi stated as he held a kunai up to Rye's neck.

Saryie's head snapped up to see Kakashi and quickly glanced across the room to see Sai stood with a kunai held to the short man's neck as well.

"Now I suggest you let my comrade go, unless you want a little off the top," Kakashi stated.

Rye let go of Saryie's wrist reluctantly as he grunted. Saryie stood quickly, flexing the hand that was once twisted. She was relieved that it wasn't broken.

"Now we can do this the easy way or the hard way. We've already found your merchandise as you call it and they've already been freed. The rest of your men down there such as Theo and his other pals have already been made immobile. So if you wish to follow their example be my guest," Kakashi exclaimed, calmly, his sharingan eye spinning in anticipation.

"Boys, if you please," Rye requested, closing his eyes and quickly made a hand sign.

Rye's men made battle cries as they charged at Saryie, Kakashi, and Sai.

Rye disappeared under the ground, slipping through Kakashi's grasp, as the team fought Rye's men. Saryie protected Lin and Seka as she fought off the men with her taijutsu. It wasn't hard to immobilize them. Most of Rye's men were not ninja and did not have much skill in fighting. Saryie took out two of the men and Kakashi and Sai both took out three each. Sai having knocked out the old man that was Rye's father.

Once the fighting was done, Saryie turned her attention to the women and untied them. She spoke consoling words to them telling them they'll be ok. Lin hugged Saryie, eagerly, telling her how brave she was. The moment was cut short as Kakashi spoke up.

"Rye escaped underground. We need to be quick. We can still track him," Kakashi stated as he did hand signs and summoned Pakkun. "Sai get the women out of here and keep them safe. Saryie and I will pursue Rye."

Pakkun appeared and Kakashi addressed him. Pakkun soon started tracking down Rye's scent and Kakashi and Saryie followed after him, ready to take Rye down.

* * *

 **Well I wanted to wrap the mission up this chapter but I think it's best to wrap it up next chapter. So no worries about Saryie, she survived. Stay tuned.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. I own Saryie, Michi, and Azumi**


	26. Chapter 26

**Ok so the mission gets wrapped up…. And a little more stuff happens. It's a bit longer than usual but I didn't want to cut the content out of it.**

 **Thank you to the kind reviews and reviewers I do get. I know I don't get many of them, but I do appreciate any comments I get about my story and I do try to improve on or highlight things in the story that might not seem so clear.**

 **Also happy late July 4** **th** **and I'm sorry this chapter wasn't uploaded last week but I was celebrating and had no time to edit. I have written up to chapter 29. For chapter 30 I have a bit of a writer's block but I'm hoping to hash it out this week.**

 **Anyways, hope you enjoy.**

* * *

 **Stirring Emotions**

Chapter 26

Kakashi and Saryie followed Pakkun as he raced through the many tunnels of the underground hideout. Saryie couldn't wait to get her hands on Rye. Her heart was beating wildly in her chest at the adrenaline. Anyone that hurts and takes advantage of the weak made her blood boil. Kakashi could sense Saryie's anger and impatience as she began to get ahead of him.

Kakashi reminded her to stay level-headed. Saryie took a deep breath as she slowed her pace, but she was determined to get even with Rye. It wasn't long until they had to skid to a halt in front of a pit of stone spikes.

"I think he knows we're on to him," Pakkun mentioned.

"Or it was a precautionary measure," Saryie commented as she backed up and took a running start as she leaped across the distance.

"Come on, he's getting away," Saryie called as she headed down the hall.

She soon heard Kakashi and Pakkun footsteps trailing up behind her.

"Don't get ahead of yourself. You don't need anger to cloud your vision in battle," Kakashi advised, smoothly.

"I'm not a kid anymore," Saryie muttered.

"Could have fooled me," Pakkun muttered as he led the way.

Saryie scoffed at the snide remark of the small dog. She was use to Pakkun's sour attitude.

"You've done well infiltrating and finding out who the boss is within the organization, but we need to stay together as a team now. We don't know what kind of tricks this guy knows. We need to stay calm in battle if we are to take him out," Kakashi stated.

"I got it; I'll get him," Saryie replied.

"We'll get him," Kakashi corrected.

"Yes, we will," Saryie stated as she pushed herself faster.

They soon broke from out of the tunnel, running up a steep slope that was newly formed and saw light at the end of the hole. It was a freshly made new exit. Saryie started running towards the exit in full sprint as Kakashi called her back.

"It's a trap!" Kakashi called as rocks began to enclose the exit and fall on the path.

Saryie kicked her speed up to full notch as she dodged the falling rocks, noticing Kakashi didn't follow behind her.

"Don't worry, I'll make it and come back for you!" Saryie exclaimed.

"Saryie!"

Saryie leapt through the hole in the ground just as the rocks sealed the exit. Saryie barely had a moment to take in her surroundings before being thrown back with a punch to her face.

"You're definitely more trouble than you're worth."

Saryie picked her self off the ground as she spit out the blood from her mouth. She sneered at Rye as he stood before her tall and dominating. Saryie ripped off the bottom portion of her kimono and stood in her fighting stance.

"Get ready to pay for all the hurt you caused so many innocent women," Saryie stated, calmly, her eyes narrowed.

Rye smirked, amusement in his eyes. "I always loved them feisty."

Saryie charged at him then, using mostly her taijutsu, coming at him with her full speed. Rye tried to be quick enough but couldn't block all of Saryie's hits. She landed blows on his ribs, his face, his stomach. She was fast enough to dodge Rye's counterattacks. Rye was a skilled fighter, but he wasn't as fast as Saryie so it was difficult for Rye to land a hit.

Saryie could feel her muscles moving easily as she anticipated most of Rye's attacks, her training with Sai having come in handy. Rye soon figured he had no chance at stopping Saryie in a hand to hand fight as he tried to block her attacks as he made quick hand signs.

"Earth style, uneven landscape," Rye called out as blood ran down his temple, his features enraged.

The earth changed as Rye rose up above the ground on a pillar of stone and other parts of the Earth didn't rise up as far as his. Saryie quickly jumped from pillar to pillar to reach Rye, clenching her teeth in anger. Saryie was close to reaching him and she could see Rye preparing for another jutsu when he was stopped half way through.

"Fang over fang."

Kiba and Akamaru charged through the stone pillar Rye was standing on with their jutsu, making Rye have to abandon his post from above them. Kiba's jutsu leveled out the earth again as it destroyed most of the pillars that were created. Rubble and stones lay all around as Saryie performed hand signs as she saw Rye picking himself off the ground again.

"Kiba, go help Kakashi get out of the tunnels. I've got this," Saryie stated as she only kept her eyes on Rye.

"Alright have at it, but when I get back, it's my turn," Kiba mentioned as he left, following the scent of Kakashi whereabouts.

Saryie smirked at Kiba's comment, before unleashing her jutsu on Rye who stood on his feet, trying to anticipate Saryie's attack.

"Water Style, Raging Stream."

Water spurred in a twisted current as it headed in Rye's direction. Rye quickly summoned a stone wall to block the water attack. The water left the earth damp as the jutsu came to an end. Rye jumped on top of his stone wall.

"Thanks for laying the foundation to my next jutsu. Women are always so helpful," Rye gloated as he performed hand signs.

"Earth Style, Enclosing Pit."

Saryie was trying to anticipate the jutsu in order to dodge it, but the earth below her feet disappeared as she fell into a deep pit below her. Saryie tried to grab hold of the dirt walls around her to stop her fall but it only slowed her fall. She landed at the bottom and tried to move to get back up the pit but found her legs stuck in mud.

Saryie struggled as she tried to figure out what kind of jutsu this was. Slowly dirt came trickling down into the pit from up above. Saryie soon realized this pit was meant to bury her like a grave.

Saryie heard familiar voices then, from up above as she felt the ground shake with Kiba's fang over fang. Kiba must have freed Kakashi already and was back at trying to attack Rye. Saryie desperately reached for something to grab to hoist herself out of the hole.

"What's the hold up?" a gruff voice called down to her.

Saryie looked up to see Pakkun looking down at her.

"I'm stuck. It some kind of earth incasing jutsu," Saryie replied.

"Ok hold on," Pakkun voiced, before scurrying off.

Saryie continued to look for a way to escape. The pit wasn't that deep only about 8 feet or so. The dirt that was falling down into the pit was up to her knees now.

Pakkun soon came back with a fallen tree branch and tried to stretch it down to her.

"What are Kakashi and Kiba doing?" Saryie questioned, her voice raised.

"They're fighting off one of Rye's jutsu. He keeps disappearing underneath the earth and popping up like a groundhog. Kiba just sprayed him with dynamic marking so Rye won't be able to evade forever," Pakkun muttered with the tree branch in his mouth.

Saryie could feel the earth shake as she heard Kiba and Akamaru call out fang-over-fang again.

"Grab hold, kid," Pakkun muttered.

Saryie grunted as she tried to reach for the tree branch. The tree branch didn't reach long enough and she wasn't sure if Pakkun could hold all her weight either. She had to think of something. She wanted to defeat Rye. She couldn't stay stuck in here for long. The dirt was piling up to her thighs now.

Saryie stuck out her hand towards the branch, focusing on her chakra to separate from her body. She reached for the branch in order to pull herself out of the ground and leave a water clone in her place. Her new form began to grow and she started to separate from her water clone grasping onto the branch.

Pakkun planted his feet firmly in the ground as he gritted his canine teeth. Just when Saryie wasn't sure this was going to work, a hand took hold of the other side of the branch helping Pakkun.

Saryie smiled as Sai offered his other hand to her. She gladly accepted his help and he grabbed onto her arm. He hauled her up next to him and Pakkun as Saryie's water clone that was left in the pit dispersed soaking the ground.

"Thanks," Saryie mentioned.

"Anything for a friend," Sai mentioned as he turned his attention to the battle.

Saryie's attention quickly refocused as she tried to analyze what was going on in the battle. Rye was attacking Kiba and Akamaru with stone pillars which started to explode based on pressure sensors underground. Saryie assumed Rye had planted underground explosives while he was evading. Kakashi was careful to evade some of the land mines as he got in close combat with Rye, as began using his chidori.

Rye seemed to have summoned a rock shaped sphere to incase his arm as he fought against Kakashi. Saryie knew lightening would work better against an Earth style user. Saryie knew it was only a matter of time until this fight was over as Kakashi also had his sharingan and was tracking all of Rye's movements.

Kakashi was still skillfully battling Rye when Rye tried to escape underground once more, but before he could make an escape Kiba and Akamaru were quick to attack. They dug up Rye from underground, sending him flying through the air.

Saryie saw her chance and took it as she sprinted across the field and leaped into the air. She wouldn't let him get away. She punched him square in the jaw twice, then in the rib, and once more in the face before performing a spinning kick to his side.

Rye fell to the ground in a heap, out of breath and barely conscious. The battle was over as Rye could barely move. Kakashi was quick to finish him with Rye taking his last breath on Earth, his last image being that of Saryie who was glaring in the distance.

Kakashi made no comment when the deed was done as a somber mood fell over the team. They knew they successfully completed the mission and that they had ended the slave trade organization with most of Rye's men being captured or killed.

Pakkun disappeared in a puff of smoke as Kakashi thanked him and the team was led by Kiba back to the women that they had rescued. Most of them seemed timid and fearful that they were not truly free.

However once Lin and Seka saw Saryie, they ran to her and threw their arms around her. They gushed thanks and sweet concerns as they were tearfully happy to be free. Saryie smiled at them and told them how she was happy to help. Saryie saw how the other women were still a bit hesitant even as Kakashi addressed them. He told them that Rye the leader had been eliminated and that they were all free to return to whatever family or life that they might have been taken from.

Saryie knew it would take some time for the women to feel safe and free once again. Saryie scanned the women that were free and saw Jinging among the crowd. She looked as hesitant as the others.

The team soon escorted the women back to the village after the women thanked them for freeing them. Each one of the women were properly returned to their families and if they had no families, at least they were left in the company of each other at a safe house to help them heal. Lin and Seka hugged Saryie before they said goodbye and gave their gratitude once more after she delivered them back to their homes.

With all the women safely free and returned, the team stayed one last time at the village inn to rest back up before they would head back to Konoha. They were all relieved that the mission was officially over and that they all were safe.

The next day, the team headed out to travel back to Konoha. With the new day and a long road of traveling ahead Saryie began to run through the mission again in her head.

"What a mission…" Kiba muttered as they were on the road home. Kiba noticed Saryie's squinting eyes and pursed lips. "What's up, you don't seem so pleased," Kiba spoke, nudging Saryie.

Sai's attention turned to Saryie as well to see what Kiba was picking up on.

"I'm just wondering… Rye used his son to lure women…. Are you sure you didn't find no child in the tunnels?" Saryie questioned, concerned.

"Na-da. Me and Akamaru sifted through those tunnels and we didn't pick up no trace of a child," Kiba answered.

Saryie bit her lip, feeling perplexed and a bit frustrated. "Maybe your sense of smell isn't that keen as you think".

"Ha! That's a laugh, I found your stench pretty easily," Kiba spoke with a sarcastic laugh. "Look we completed our mission. There's no point in going after a little kid that probably had no idea what was going on in the first place," Kiba mentioned, gravely.

"I know, but it just doesn't seem right… I feel bad for him," Saryie stated, unhappily.

"We can't fix the world, Saryie." Kakashi spoke, calmly. "It's best to let the matter drop."

Saryie grunted in response, not very happy with the lack of conclusion.

"How is it that our best tracker in Konoha couldn't pick up the scent of a little kid…" Saryie muttered out of frustration.

"HEY! I was a little preoccupied with saving your stinky butt," Kiba bellowed, his voiced raised with Akamaru barking in agreement.

"Besides like Kakashi-sensei says we can't fix everything. I was only supposed to keep track of you and help set free those women. There was no trace, hint, or smell of a kid living in those tunnels. That should at least set your mind at ease that the kid wasn't living down there and was enslaved," Kiba retorted.

Saryie rolled her eyes, as she tried to let the matter drop, knowing it was for the best. A moment of silence fell over the group as the team continued racing through the terrain. They let the silence pass between them for the rest of their journey.

It was when they woke up for the second day's journey that Kakashi realized the team was still drained. The bickering of Saryie and Kiba was beginning to get under Kakashi's skin. It all started when Saryie had to be woken up. Saryie had fallen into her dead sleep and she wouldn't stir, no matter how much noise was made.

It was when Sai tried to awaken her by fleetingly touching her sides as attempts to tickle her that Kiba became alarmed. Kiba after seeing the oddity of the gesture, asked what the hell Sai was doing. To which Sai explained how he had seen Saryie's teammate, Michi, wake her in a similar fashion when she was in a deep sleep. With new found knowledge and understanding, Kiba pushed Sai aside.

Kiba then told Sai, he was doing it wrong as Kiba went to tickle Saryie. Saryie indeed awoke, fidgeting with laughter but it quickly turned to pain as Saryie's head collided with Kiba's.

Saryie winced as Kiba fell on her, cursing at the sudden head rush. Kakashi soon could feel a heavy sigh leave him as he heard Saryie start yelling at Kiba and Kiba yelling back at her as Sai sat off to the side of the disputing teammates.

And now… well Saryie wasn't any happier than she was this morning.

"Some gentleman you are… with your obnoxious and unapologetic attitude," Saryie commented in a snide remark as the team made their way into the Fire country.

"You're no princess either and I don't see why I have to apologize when your head hit mine," Kiba remarked, annoyed.

"You were leaning over me!"

"I was trying to wake you up!"

"There's more less creepy ways to do it!" Saryie defended.

"Sai had tried the same thing!" Kiba stated, aggravated.

Saryie looked to her other side to look at Sai.

Sai stared Saryie straight in the eye as he explained. "You were in a deep slumber. I only was trying to awaken you much like Michi had on our last mission together. However, it seems I could not make you laugh in order for you to awaken," Sai stated, evenly.

"You tried tickling me?" Saryie questioned.

Sai nodded with a smile, unaware of the situation.

Saryie's attention snapped back to Kiba.

"I'm still expecting an apology," Saryie stated.

"Don't get your hopes up," Kiba muttered.

"Pff, you're no knight in shining armor, that's for sure," Saryie remarked.

"And you're no ray of sunshine either, stinky," Kiba retorted.

"I find Saryie's scent rather delightful and her aura rather cheerful," Sai spoke bluntly, emotionless.

Saryie couldn't help the small smile and blush that spilled over her cheeks at Sai's comment. Kiba's expression was in an utter stupor as he quickly took a pointed look at Sai. Kiba quirked his brow, his mouth setting into a firm frown.

"Yea, well that's only your opinion," Kiba spoke, with a rough tone.

Before anyone else could say a word, Kakashi brought the team to a halt. As they took a look at their surroundings, they saw a bath house in plain sight.

"I think I speak for the betterment of the team when I say I believe we could use a little break and a little breather. So soak up for an hour, my treat," Kakashi stated, openly.

Without reluctance, the team headed into the bathhouse and split ways as Saryie headed to the female's side of the establishment as the boys went to the men's side.

Saryie was happy to have a little peace away from Kiba, but she wasn't too thrilled taking time out of their day to relax in hot bath water. Saryie didn't mind the water as long as she was swimming in it, but to just sit and try to relax in it? She knew she get bored quickly after 10 minutes of it.

Sighing softly and leaving her clothes in the locker room, she headed to the bath water in a towel. She let the towel drop as she stepped into the water. It was a lovely feeling as the hotness from the water soothed her sore muscles. Saryie scrubbed the dirt from her skin and rinsed her hair out. She was finally settling down in the bath tub, but it was mere minutes before she found herself bored, sitting there.

It wasn't until she heard voices drifting from the other room behind the wall that she was able to shake her boredom.

She could distinctly hear Kiba as he splashed his way into the bathwaters on the other side in the men's room. She heard how Kiba disliked how the rules prohibited dogs and Saryie could vaguely hear Kakashi's low mumble that it was probably due to the dog hair in the water.

Saryie sat quiet as she listened to her teammates.

"So Sai…." Kiba's voice started off innocently, "Do you and Saryie have a thing or something?" Kiba asked, obnoxiously.

"A thing?" Sai questioned, his voice relaxed.

"Yea, I see the way she looks at you…. and what you said about her today… I'm just wondering are you two like a couple or what?" Kiba asked boldly, his voice unwavering.

"What I stated earlier was my mere opinion of her," Sai paused, his voice level as he continued. "Yet, to answer your question if me and Saryie are a couple, I am not sure… we have been seeing each other fairly often and I have taken her out on a date, but I do not know if this means we are in a relationship or not," Sai answered, honestly.

"Whoa! You went on a date?" Kiba asked, shocked.

"Yes, that is what I said," Sai answered, a little puzzled and Saryie could hear the confusion in his voice that made her smile.

"I can't believe it," Kiba muttered, woefully.

"It does seem out of the blue," Kakashi stated, unperturbed at the news.

Saryie could feel her cheeks heating up again. She was excited and was relieved at Sai's answers. She was happy to know Sai was not faking his compliments he spoke earlier that day, but she knew that they had some understandings that they needed to clear up. She was giddy at the thought of them being a couple, but she wondered if Sai knew what it meant. She wondered if he understood the relationship ties and significance of it. She didn't want to be in a relationship with him just because. She wanted to be on the same page as him and she didn't want to rush what he might be feeling or what he might want.

Saryie could only sit in the bath water for a little while longer as the boys made a few remarks. Saryie soon got ready as the hour had finally past and was waiting outside the bathhouse for the others. She was happy to get back on the road and to Konoha again. It would only take a little less than 2 hours to reach it from here.

"About time you boys are finally done," Saryie commented as the boys from her team exited the bathhouse.

"Oooweee is that you, Saryie? Almost didn't recognize you. You smell completely different," Kiba teased, with a small smile as he pointed at his nose.

"Oh put a sock in it!" Saryie spoke sharply and could hear Kakashi sigh once more before they headed off back to the village.

* * *

 **Well how do you like that? I wrapped up the mission swiftly and gave you a bit of teasing of emotions. I don't intend to make Sai get jealous over Kiba. If anything, Kiba will be jealous about Sai. Kiba is more for Sai to question where his relationship stands with Saryie. Anyway hope you like the conclusion to the mission but I did leave it a bit open-ended. But now is the time for the story to be moving on further into season 6 so stay tune!**

 **Also I will try to clear up why Saryie and Kakashi have a standoffish relationship with each other.**

 **Please Review.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. I do own Saryie, Michi and Azumi.**


	27. Chapter 27

**So this chapter is set in season 6 as all the craziness of that season takes place. Enjoy!**

* * *

 **Stirring Emotions**

Chapter 27

It had been two days since their last mission when Sai was called to another mission with Kakashi as team captain with Team Kakashi and Team Kurenai. Saryie wasn't sure what the mission was about that Sai and Kakashi both got assigned too, but all she knew was he had to leave in the middle of a rainy afternoon. She hoped that whatever the mission may entail, that it would be extremely boring. Mostly because of the fact that Kakashi did not pick her to go with them.

It was the next day when Saryie, after waking up, was surprised to find a note under her door. With a yawn, Saryie opened it to find that the sender was Azumi and that she requested Saryie to gather Michi and to meet her at the training ground #10 that was placed in deep foliage and trees.

Saryie gathered her things and ate a bit of bread before heading out of her apartment and made her way to fetch Michi. Saryie was thankful that it didn't take much effort to get Michi to come with her to training this time. It was because Michi was already up and not so happily doing chores. He jumped at the excuse to leave his chores behind and follow Saryie.

"Man, you saved me. I'm glad I'm finally free from doing anything," Michi mentioned, relief in his voice.

"Don't act like I went out of my way to save you from your chores. Azumi wanted to see us," Saryie replied, lightly annoyed.

"What an angel you are. Tell me, how is you and your new boy toy doing, Sai? Hm?" Michi commented, teasing with a smirk.

Saryie shoved Michi. "Shut up."

Just as Saryie and Michi were entering into the trees that led to the training field, they began to hear an ominous noise. They stopped short at the sound, going on the defensive.

"Hmmmm. A storm is coming," Michi stated as he was looking up at the sky, pinpointing where the sound had originated from.

Saryie looked up at the grey sky, perplexed.

As the thunder came again from the sky above, Saryie and Michi's attention drew to a new sound as the Earth shook. Trees soon became crashing down around them.

"Watch out," Michi called as he moved from the collapsing trees.

Saryie moved fast on her feet away from Michi. Something about this didn't seem right. Saryie landed on a branch in a tree away from the other falling trees. Before she could catch her breath, the branch snapped from under her weight. She fell to the ground and had to move quickly as the tree she was in came crashing down towards her. Saryie ran.

Her legs soon getting swept up in the vines. She lost sight of Michi. Rain began to pour down from the sky and lightening stuck the ground by her. She tried to twist out of the vines but they seemed to constrict as she fought.

This wasn't right. They were on their way to see Azumi…. AZUMI! That was it. Saryie grunted, closing her eyes as she concentrated. She cut off all her chakra at once; snapping out of the genjutsu.

Saryie opened her eyes to find herself standing beside Michi who was still stuck under the genjutsu. The sky was clear and the trees stood firm in the ground. Saryie felt furious. She knew who put her under a genjutsu.

Saryie placed her hand on Michi, sending chakra into his body, letting him snap out of the genjutsu. She pulled him after her as Saryie began to sprint.

"This has Azumi written all over it and I'm going to kick her butt," Saryie stated as they ran.

"Is this really necessary?!" Michi called as he tried the keep up with Saryie's speed. "I'm getting dirt in my shoes."

Saryie let go of Michi after he pulled her hand from his jacket and he began running at his own pace.

Saryie soon came to the clearing where there sat Azumi on the ground with a scroll laid out in front of her. Azumi had her eyes closed and had her hands out in front of her.

"You jerk!" Saryie shouted as she went to punch Azumi's face.

Saryie stopped short, seconds before her fist was going to make contact with Azumi's face. Azumi had moved quickly and was now holding a senbon to Saryie's shoulder.

"Careful. One scratch and you'll end up immobile for the rest of training," Azumi commented, opening her eyes to stare, steadily at Saryie.

"What the hell is the big idea?" Saryie spoke angrily with clenched teeth, withdrawing her fist, standing over Azumi.

Michi arrived then and sensed the hostility in the air.

"I was performing a test run," Azumi stated, evenly.

Michi came to crouch beside Azumi, his face clearly expressing curiosity.

"You figured out the seal?" Michi asked calmly, no form of malice in his voice.

"Is that what this was about? Why not just tell us you thought you figured it out!" Saryie stated, annoyed, crossing her arms.

"Then how would I have known the seal worked if I had not tested it?" Azumi questioned.

Saryie glared at Azumi as Michi took the lead in the conversation.

"How does it work?" Michi asked, as he studied the seal before Azumi.

"It takes a transfer of chakra from user and supplies it to the other seal to perform the jutsu of the user's choosing. The seal that receives the chakra has to be triggered by the presence of a different chakra, before the jutsu from the seal is dispensed among the target. The jutsu then plays out until the target disperses it or faints," Azumi explained, clearly.

"Where was the other seal?" Saryie asked, her tone still bitter.

"I hid the seals in several trees. Once you entered into the proximity of one of those trees the seal sensed the foreign chakra and activated," Azumi replied.

"Like an alarm system, you wanted to create," Michi stated.

"Precisely," Azumi agreed.

"Were you able to tell when the seal became active?" Michi questioned.

"Yes, I could sense when the jutsu became active," Azumi answered.

"Can this seal transfer multiple chakras?" Michi asked, serious.

"Yes, it is how I plan on me and Saryie transferring jutsu to different segments in the area which is why I called you both out here. To practice," Azumi stated.

Saryie let her anger fall away as she squatted next to her two teammates and began listening in on how they were going to train today. Azumi wanted her and Saryie to practice transferring chakra into the seal. Saryie had to learn the new hand signs in order for it to work. At first Saryie had to start with transferring her chakra to the seal and Michi having to run around to test if it worked or not. Michi wasn't too thrilled about all the running but he knew they were getting closer to figuring out this jutsu.

Afternoon soon fell upon them as they worked together to learn how to use these new seals to their advantage. Saryie and Azumi hadn't quite gotten the hang of transferring their chakra as one into the seal, but as they continued the process became harder. They soon fell out of breath, after losing so much chakra.

Right when Michi thought they were going to call it quits for the day, because his two teammates were out of chakra, Saryie got right back on her feet. She began sparring with Michi, only using taijutsu. Michi didn't like the turn of events as he tried to evade. Saryie told him to stop being a big baby, that he needed the practice.

Azumi let them spar as she sat back and watched with a calculating eye. Michi was complaining loudly as he blocked and tried running away as Saryie kept trying to motivate him. The sparring didn't stop until they were greeted with a formal hello by their sensei.

"Seems as if nothing ever changes," Iroha expressed solemnly.

Saryie quit chasing after Michi to look upon Iroha as Michi fell to his butt in happiness.

"Oh thank goodness!" Michi spoke, relieved as he laid down.

"I'm sure you were all working hard on your new jutsu," Iroha stated, eyeing Azumi for an answer.

"Yes. The training however has become quite exhaustive," Azumi spoke, clearly, her face expressionless.

"I hope you're making progress. I came to inform you; I'll be testing your jutsu once more in the week or two. I'll send a notice to you when the date is confirmed," Iroha spoke, professionally.

"Who are we going to be fighting this time?" Saryie questioned, eager

Iroha looked at Saryie as he answered her. "Much like in battle, one sometimes does not know who their opponent will be. So focus more on sharpening your own defenses rather trying to beat an unknown opponent."

"Oh come on, one hint?!" Saryie asked, with a slight whine.

"No," Iroha spoke firmly.

"Please?"

"No."

"Ughh…" Saryie muttered as she crossed her arms.

"I will take my leave now. Keep your schedule open for next week. Goodbye," Iroha stated as he took off out of the training grounds.

Once their sensei was gone, Azumi stood up. "We'll pick this up tomorrow morning. Be sure to be prepared to train as extensively as today," Azumi spoke as she took her leave.

"Finally time to relax," Michi said as began to pick himself up off the floor.

"Not quite!" Saryie stated as she went back to sparring with Michi against his will.

"OH COME ON!" Michi whined as he activated his reptilian armor as he blocked her attacks.

They sparred until Michi literally had enough and sat on the floor as Saryie landed a couple of blows to his form. Saryie soon quit and promised Michi she was done sparring with him. When Michi finally got up, they agreed to go get dinner as it was already night time. Michi was already complaining about this week like how it was going to be annoying but Saryie tried to cheer him up.

When they sat down at the restaurant and had ordered, they began to lightly chat. Once the food had arrived that was when Michi asked an unexpecting question.

"So how are you and Sai doing?" Michi asked, casually as he took care to slurp his noodles.

Saryie quirked an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"Don't try to play it cool… I know you been seeing him. How did your last mission go with him?" Michi inquired, watching Saryie attentively.

Saryie took a hesitant moment. The flashbacks of the previous mission crossing through her mind as she chewed her food carefully. "Well it was … a success. The mission that is… besides it's not like the mission was just me and him. We didn't have much bonding time on the mission," Saryie stated, a bit defensive.

"Oh… so you would like more bonding time?" Michi said playfully as he cracked a smile.

"No! That's not what I meant," Saryie exclaimed, as she huffed a breath.

"Relax… you got people staring now," Michi commented as he took another bite.

"Good, let them stare," Saryie stated, fiercely

"Are you sure about him?" Michi asked, his tone serious.

Saryie could read the concern in his eyes and features. Saryie knew Michi saw Saryie as one of his sisters and as a big brother, he felt it was his job to protect her.

"Don't worry, I know he's a good guy," Saryie stated, evenly.

"Yea, but I just… want you to be careful. The dude was hardwired to be a machine. He might be experiencing a lot of new things that he might not fully comprehend… I just don't want you to get hurt when he finally sorts through his emotions, because what if he… realizes he doesn't share the same feelings as you do?" Michi expressed concerned and a bit solemnly.

Saryie looked down at her food and gave a soft smile as her mind contemplated her answer. "I know he's not sure what he's feeling…" Saryie started in a steady voice and looked up at Michi. "I know this is all new to him. He's insecure in forming bonds with anyone. He's hesitant in reading social situations. He stands out from a crowd and he is brutally honest, but I know there's a part of him longing for a connection.

"Even though he's told he has to blend in and conceal who he wants to be, he wants to be acknowledged; he wants to be remembered; he wants a friend. Even if he doesn't return my feelings at the end, at least he'll still have me as his friend. I'm helping him learn to live," Saryie declared with firmness in her voice.

Michi took a moment as he dapped his mouth with his napkin. "Point made…" Michi spoke, clearly but his eyes held his intense gaze. "But I still don't want your feelings to get hurt. Be sure as you go on helping him discover his emotions that you don't let yours go crazy," Michi warned, lowly.

Saryie huffed at Michi as she rolled her eyes.

"Sai was in the Root Division, after all… they were trained to infiltrate and spy on others…" Michi mentioned, squarely.

"I get it… I'll keep my emotions in check and you…" Saryie stated as she dipped her finger in the gooey sauce on her plate and placed it on Michi's nose, "should keep your nose out of it." Saryie chuckled, her grin lightening up the mood.

Michi cracked a grin as well as he wiped the sauce off his nose. "Alright, alright. I'll keep my nose out of it… for the most part. Plus, snooping around can take up so much energy, after all," Michi spoke, his voice taking on his casual tone.

Saryie laughed lightly as she took a bite of her food.

"Speaking of energy… how much energy did it take for you not to punch Kiba in the face on your last mission?" Michi asked with a smirk.

Saryie laughed shortly. "A lot! I even had to hold his hand," Saryie complained.

"Ha. That's funny… So wait, you held his hand? Did your boy toy not get jealous?" Michi asked, tentatively.

"I don't think Sai knows what it is like to be jealous. He wasn't jealous. I think he was oblivious to the implications of the gesture," Saryie said with a calm voice.

"Hm, fascinating. I bet Kiba was jealous of you and Sai's blooming friendship though," Michi theorized as he took a swig from his cup of water.

"Kiba? Why would he be jealous?" Saryie asked, wide eyed.

"No reason," Michi commented with a smirk.

"Anyway, how are your sisters doing in the academy?"

"Pretty good from what I hear. Miyu could graduate any day now if she wanted, but she's not very good about following the rules. Airi on the other hand is at the top of her class and a very over achieving student," Michi explained.

"So what I'm hearing is… they're going to be better ninja than you someday?" Saryie teased with a laugh.

"Ha, funny. I see what you're trying to do. It won't work. I don't care if they're better than me or not," Michi mentioned as he tried to hide his grin. "In fact I think they might even be better than you some day."

Michi laughed at Saryie's glaring face as she kicked him under the table. They continued chatting until their meals were finished and they headed back to their respective homes.

For the rest of the week, Team H practiced from early morning to the late afternoon trying to coordinate their efforts and chakra into performing the defensive jutsu. They made great progress and their chakras were almost depleted every day. Saryie knew they had to make this jutsu stronger. It wasn't strong enough yet.

Saryie also found out that Azumi was still working on incorporating a new seal into the jutsu. It was to help make Saryie's efforts in defending Michi's barrier stronger. Saryie was excited about that aspect of her training but Azumi hadn't quit figured that seal out yet.

Michi complained how his muscles were sore and stiff throughout most of the training sessions. Azumi and Saryie had to push him to his limits in order for him to cooperate. Azumi seemed to be unsatisfied with the progress they were making on the jutsu.

Saryie grew to miss Sai as the week dragged on. At first, when Saryie heard news that Team Kurenai was back, she had automatically thought Team Kakashi was back as well. However, it turned out that Team Kakashi, featuring Naruto, Sakura, Sai and Yamato, had to go on a back-to-back mission. Saryie didn't get much details as Kakashi complained he had a mission report to fill out.

Saryie had sighed at that time and knew she would have to wait for Sai to come back before she could get any details on the matter. She might have asked Hinata about the mission if Saryie was close to her, but she knew how shy Hinata could be. She wouldn't dare ask Kiba because he would make it all about himself and how much she stinks. Shino was out of the question because Saryie would not get near that man for the life of her… the idea of bugs running around in a person's body frightened her.

So Saryie would have to wait for Sai to return to get the story. Saryie wished Sai the best of luck and hoped that his mission would be a success. In the meantime, however, her team had a lot of training ahead and she had no time to be sad about the fact Sai was gone.

Saryie would never mope over that fact. She would miss his company but as a ninja it was custom, that they would be assigned missions that could span weeks at a time.

Saryie was eager to be training so hard every day and it made the days go by faster for her.

* * *

 **Ok so it was a training and learning chapter as Sai went off on a mission. This chapter is set around season 6 and 7 so in the next chapter I'll remind you what mission Team Kakashi and Kurenai went on. Hope you enjoy. Stay tune.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, I own Saryie, Michi and Azumi**


	28. Chapter 28

**Ok so this all takes place after season 7; You'll see what I mean.**

* * *

 **Stirring Emotions**

Chapter 28

Saryie was excited when she found out Team Kakashi was back in Konoha. Her team had just gotten done with training for the day when Sai had met her afterwards. They soon spent that night talking about the missions that Sai had went on as Saryie told him about her team's recent training. Both of them were resting on top of a rooftop overlooking the Village as the stars shone above them. They both agreed that they couldn't stay up very late.

Saryie still had a training session with her team in the morning and could not afford to stay up. Sai was tired from the long days of tracking and traveling. He soon went on to explain his first mission with Kakashi, Yamato, Sakura, Naruto, Shino, Hinata, and Kiba. They had left in hopes to capture Itachi Uchiha after hearing that Sasuke had killed Orochimaru. Naruto knew that Sasuke's next target would be Itachi so they set off to find him.

Sai told Saryie how they got a hint of Sasuke's scent after having witnessed an explosion nearby, but tracking Sasuke happened to be very difficult. Sai told Saryie how Sasuke had built a team of his own that had a sensory ninja on it. When Sai's team finally managed to pinpoint Sasuke's location, they were blocked by a member of the Akatsuki that wore an orange mask.

Saryie's interest flared up at the mention of the Akatsuki as Sai spoke about the Akatsuki member's unusual jutsu; how objects phased right through him. Saryie was curious about the jutsu and the jutsu wielder that possessed the sharingan eye that Sai described. Sai concluded that their first mission was unsuccessful as they lost trace of Sasuke and that Itachi was now deceased.

Sai's other mission that he briefly explained was how the Tsuchigumo clan had a secret forbidden jutsu and were under attack. When Sai's team got there, they were told to protect Lady Hotaru until they got to the Tsuchigumo village. However, the village tried to betray her to the enemies that were after her so their mission got extended further. They soon learned how the forbidden jutsu was embedded in Lady Hotaru's back. When the enemy had gotten their hands on her, they tried to destroy the village but Naruto and her master, Utakata, were able to stop them. Utakata was also able to extract the jutsu from her and destroy it.

After hearing about Sai's mission and all the details, they agreed to see each other the next day after Saryie's training. Saryie went to sleep that night peacefully and was excited to get up the next morning.

Her team's training was going smoothly and Saryie worked up a sweat by the time late afternoon came around. Once her team was done for the day, Saryie went to shower quickly and then left to meet up with Sai at his apartment.

She knocked on the door and Sai opened it.

"Hey," Saryie greeted with a smile on her face.

"Hello, would you like to come in?" Sai asked, with his own smile gracing his features.

"Really? Are you sure?" Saryie questioned, curious.

"Yes, I'm sure. Didn't you at one-point wish to see my art work?" Sai replied, his tone light.

Saryie's smile grew wider. "Yes, I still wish to see it," Saryie answered, cheery.

Sai stepped to the side to let Saryie into his apartment. Saryie entered as she took in her surroundings of his apartment. It was neat and tidy, but also very bare. He had very few personal items that decorated his living room. His floor was shiny as if it had been mopped recently and not a speck of dust could be seen littering the furniture.

"Right this way and I'll show you my artwork," Sai stated as he led the way, passing his living room and kitchen to a tiny hall that led to two rooms.

Sai opened the door to his art room and let Saryie enter first. Saryie half expected that this room would be more lively, however despite the art pieces that accentuated the walls and brought color to the bare room, it wasn't as chaotic as she thought it be. Sai's art tools, canvas, papers, and sketch pads were all neatly piled and organized in their proper place Sai assigned them. The room held a large table that was centered to the left of the room. There was a stool and an easel to the left of a window and to the right side of the room there were shelfs of his sketch books.

Saryie casually walked along the walls of his art pieces, examining them as Sai stood patiently at the door. Saryie floated over to the shelf that contain his sketchbooks and began to pull one out when Sai's hand stopped her. Saryie blushed at the contact of his hand over hers as he guided her hand to different sketchbook.

"This one is more recent," Sai spoke calmly, unaware of the gesture as he smiled.

Saryie took the sketch book in her hands as she went to the large table on the side of the room. She began flipping through the pages, admiring his artwork. There were some sketches of animals, of landscapes, of still life, and of people. He had used different mediums too. Some in color, some in black and white. He was brilliant.

Saryie soon recognized some of the faces of people from the village as his subjects in his art pieces. He drew real life pieces and highlighted them with color. The one thing she did not see in his sketches were ninja or anything violent. All his drawings were serene and gave clarity. A piece of peace that could not actually be found in the world.

Saryie smiled as she looked up at Sai who stood beside her.

"They're all lovely. You are a very skilled artist. Your works bring a sense of amity to them… sometimes by the way you highlight certain colors or depict the mood," Saryie expressed, honestly.

Sai smiled as he took the sketchbook from her. "Thank you," Sai said as he grabbed another book. "Would you care to take a look at this one?" Sai offered, lightly.

Saryie nodded as he approached and opened it in front of her. They both began examining the contents of his work, making comments and enjoying each other's company. Saryie soon seen three different sketch books of his, before they both retired to get some dinner.

They had left Sai's apartment to grab take out from a street vendor. They chatted lightly as they ate while walking about. Saryie notice Sai was acting rather peculiar as she watched him inspecting others around them more often than usual.

They sat at a park bench as they finished off their meal.

"How did you injure your leg?" Sai questioned, bluntly catching Saryie off guard.

Saryie unconsciously looked down at her bandaged leg, fidgeting with it. Saryie's eyes then connected with Sai's, trying to read his blank face. She pursed her lips, debating on whether if she should talk about it.

"I suppose I could tell you…" Saryie started off.

"It would be enlightening," Sai stated.

"Why do you want to know?" Saryie asked, her tone serious as she watched him.

"I've been pondering why you wrap up your injuries. I have only assumed you have a scar or a burn on your leg, there must be a story behind it," Sai spoke, rationally.

Saryie lifted her leg as she unwrapped the bandages from it. Two nasty long ragged scars ran down her shin and ankle as if she had been caught in a bear trap. Saryie sighed before wrapping up the old injury again.

"It happened back in my genin days… way before I ever took the chunin exams," Saryie spoke, clearly. "We had been assigned a simple D-rank mission by the Third Hokage outside of Konoha's gates. Someone had paid good money for the mission to track down a hare… like literally we had to go find a bunny that this guy had lost or something.

"Well in order for us to cover more ground, Iroha split us up into pairs. I was paired up with Michi." Saryie smiled slightly at the memory as she continued

"It was midday when I had spotted the bunny. It kept getting away and running from us. It could hear us approach, no matter what direction we came from because of its big ears. So me and Michi decided to corner it.

"Michi was going to use his camouflage jutsu while I redirected the bunny's attention in the opposite direction. Michi was close to nabbing the thing, when I felt a dark presence looming beside me. I barely was able to turn around when I was knocked out of the tree branch I was standing on.

"My landing scared the bunny off, of course," Saryie snickered at that as her eyes became serious. "When I got a good look at the two intruders, they were Mist ninja according to the markings on their headbands. Their eyes were solely focused on me and I remember glancing away, knowing they hadn't spotted Michi who was still invisible.

"I had quickly got into my defensive stance and prepared myself to fight them. I was stubborner back then and brash. I charged at them, thinking I could take them on. My efforts were evaded as I swung and kicked as hard as I could at them. They soon grew tired of my restlessness as they deliberately striked at my shoulder and my gut to knock me off my feet.

"I had fell back, out of breath as they chuckled and talked through weird ventilators around their mouths. It made them sound robotic almost… They said they were lucky in finding a weak leaf genin out in the open. It made their job easier, they said. They were looking for intel on the Hidden Leaf Village. Anything they could get their hands on.

"I had caught from the corner of my eye, Michi in the trees. Michi knew we weren't strong enough to face these two mist ninja alone so he had remained hidden. At the time, I thought Michi was being a coward by not helping me fight them," Saryie spoke lightly as she smirked briefly. "Instead Michi did the smart thing; he went off to bring back Iroha and Azumi.

"I tried to hold my own against the two mist ninja. I had used a weak water jutsu at the time but it only seemed to piss them off more.

"One of the ninja had a metal contraption in place of his arm. It was able to extend from this body and it snatched me by the leg. The sharp edges of the contraption cut into my leg, giving me these scars," Saryie mentioned evenly as she gestured to her leg before continuing.

"The ninja who trapped my leg brought me closer to him and his partner. It was then that they carried me off until they found a secluded area so the other partner could cast a genjutsu on me. He called it the Triple Mist Mind Invasion. Suddenly, I was trapped in my own mind, lost in a haze of mist. I lost all senses of the physical world and all I could see was heavy fog.

"I felt like I couldn't breathe. I soon saw the ninja there as well. He was in my mind with me, but I wasn't in control. I tried to move to reach him to fight him, but I was trapped behind an invisible wall. All I could do was watch as I saw him pick through my brain… He combed through my memories; each of them were displayed in front of him openly. He took witness to everything I ever experienced. He saw it all. He was able to read my thoughts and see my emotions. Everything that I was in that moment was taken part piece by piece and inspected…" Saryie trailed off quietly, her eyes down casted.

"It felt like forever being trapped. Being invaded and examined. I couldn't do anything. I was helpless. I felt exposed and truly vulnerable. He saw everything: my weaknesses, my fears, my pain, my shame and my hopes….

"He disappeared at some point though and I no longer felt his presence in my mind, but I was still trapped in the mist. I was still stuck in my own mind. There was nothing in the fog. Only darkness and emptiness. I tried to break free; I ran around trying to find a way out, but nothing worked.

"When I had finally come to, I was back in the Leaf Village. The mist had cleared from my mind and I was able to see and hear again. I was laid out on a table in Azumi's home in front of her father. My team was standing by anxious. Iroha was relieved to see me conscious again. Michi had hugged me tightly once I sat up. He told me how he was so sorry for leaving me, that he wasn't fast enough. Azumi stood across the room analyzing the situation from afar in her silent ways.

"The jutsu had left me drowsy and gave me a nasty headache. I vaguely remember hearing Iroha thanking Azumi's dad for his help before he whisked me off to the hospital for proper care. The doctors ran a bunch of tests and kept me there for observation. They made sure to attend to my leg and stitched it up.

"I was held in the hospital for a week. The medical ninja wanted to make sure I didn't suffer any side effects from the jutsu I was under. Apparently, it was a jutsu ninja were lucky to survive… that most victims get lost in the fog of their own minds and get stuck in a coma.

"When I was cleared from the hospital, I was allowed to go home. My home at the time was Kakashi's place," Saryie commented, briefly sighing as she went on. "He was distant towards me and was not sure how to handle the situation. For many nights it was hard for me to sleep. Sometimes I would feel as if someone were combing through my brain again. It made me frustrated with how weak I was. How I wasn't strong enough to defeat those two ninja. I told myself I was never going to be helpless again. I wasn't going to let it happen.

"So in order for something like that to never happen again, I had asked Azumi to teach me how to detect and break a genjutsu. She had first told me that not all ninja are capable of doing so. That it took a lot of training and mental sharpness to detect a genjutsu, and took even more effort to break it. I had told her I didn't care. That I wanted her to teach me. Iroha had heard my pleas and thought it was a good idea for all of us to have training in genjutsu. Azumi finally agreed to it.

"Michi didn't care much to learn about genjutsu. He can sometimes pick up on the effects of it. He has a hard time discerning genjutsu and he can't break a genjutsu even after he realizes he's in one. We've tried multiple times, but he never could disrupt his chakra flow. Azumi says that some people have the chakra control to do so, others don't.

"I was able to learn, fortunately," Saryie spoke, lightly, a smile forming on her face. "It took forever to learn though. Azumi cast many genjutsus on me until I got the feel of them and once I learned on how to detect them, I had to try breaking them on my own. It was sort of therapy for me…. I didn't want anyone else parading through my mind and at least if they were there I would be able to kick them out. It helped me feel better, to feel more secure," Saryie stated, staring off into the distance.

"Why do you continue to wrap up your leg though?" Sai asked, his eyes keenly taking in her expression on her face.

"My mom had seen it once… I didn't think much of it… but when she had seen it and I saw her face… I just thought that all she saw was an incompetent, sloppy ninja I must be. I don't mind the scars… but I'm not proud of them," Saryie answered, firmly as she looked steadily into Sai's eyes.

Sai studied her face, before grabbing her hand.

"I understand, I have scars too that I'm not proud of either," Sai mentioned, comfortingly.

Saryie smiled lightly at that and turned her hand so her palm was in his. She gave his hand a light squeeze before she giggled and dragged him off the park bench. They began walking hand in hand in the park with Saryie very close to Sai's side.

They talked on lighter topics for the rest of the night until it was time to retire and head to their respective apartments. Sai had walked Saryie to her door before leaving her for the night, finally letting go of her hand.

Saryie could feel her heart melting as she had to say goodbye. When she walked into her apartment and prepared for bed, she was surprised to find a note under her door.

It was from Iroha about Team H's second test. It would occur the day after tomorrow and about where to meet. Saryie could feel her heart beat starting to pick up in excitement. This time she was sure that they were going to pass whatever test Iroha had planned for them.

* * *

 **Alright so you got another glimpse and story about Saryie's past in her genin days. It's one of her defining moments how she wasn't going to let tragedy take her down. She was going to fight it and be prepared for the next round. Hope you enjoy and Hope you enjoyed the Sai and Saryie- ness .**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. I do own Saryie, Michi, and Azumi.**


	29. Chapter 29

**Alright prepare for nothing but action…. Dun dun dun.**

* * *

 **Stirring Emotions**

Chapter 29

Team H had arrived in the early afternoon at Iroha's request. The team got their much needed rest for the night knowing that this new test needed to go better than last time. Saryie was eager to show off what they had been practicing. Michi was just happy that this test was taking place in the afternoon and Azumi was professionally analytical as always.

The three of them waited patiently as Iroha arrived right on time. He stood before them tall and proper as he greeted each of them.

"Alright are you three ready for your second test?" Iroha asked with a clear voice.

"Yes!" Saryie answered for the three of them, boastfully.

"Good. The rules are the same as last time. If the opposing team gets their hands on this kunai, the test is over and you fail," Iroha announced as he pulled a kunai out of his pouch and threw it on the ground. "Be prepared, and I wish you all luck," Iroha spoke before disappearing into the trees to spectate.

Quickly the three of them got into position, each pulling out a separate scroll. Michi rolled out his roughly and made quick hand signs to summon the pillars of stone Azumi needed.

"Eight stone summoning jutsu," Michi called out.

The pillars emerged evenly off in the distance as Azumi and Saryie prepared to transport their jutsu to the seals that were on the stones. Azumi unraveled her scroll precisely and Saryie did so too. They did hand signs simultaneously with each of them sending the same amount of chakra into the seals on the scrolls to combine their jutsu.

"Ninja Art, Transferring Water Clone Genjutsu," they both called in union as the jutsu was set.

Michi went to the spot where the Iroha's kunai was and sat next to it.

"Don't blow it this time," Michi remarked, teasingly as he smirked and made hand signs, his reptilian armor forming around him and the kunai in a giant dome.

"Pheesh, he has the easiest part," Saryie commented with the roll of her eyes as she saw Azumi pulling out some wire and senbon.

"What are you doing?" Saryie asked, curiously.

"Plan B."

* * *

The opposing team was fast approaching the targeted area, that was until they got swept up into the genjutsu that was triggered. They were surrounded by 100 clones or what looked to be clones.

Few of the members of the opposite team began fighting the clones but soon realized they couldn't hit them as their limbs would fade through the clones.

"These are mere illusions," Neji stated as he scanned the area with his byakugan

"A genjutsu?" Tenten voiced as she swatted at the illusions, making no real progress.

"Looks like it, such a drag," Shikamaru's voice came, annoyed as he was analyzing the situation.

"Well we just got to break out of it," Ino stated as she concentrated on breaking the genjutsu.

"That won't work; this is not an ordinary genjutsu," Neji stated as he eyes were looking at something that couldn't be seen. "It looks like this genjutsu was triggered by a seal and I spy several other seals in separate areas."

"Well how do we break it?" Tenten inquired.

"We have to take out the real clone," Neji answered.

"The real clone?" Choji asked, bewildered.

"How can you tell?" Tenten asked.

"These clones are all of Saryie… Azumi wouldn't make illusions of Saryie unless Saryie had a real clone hidden amongst them," Shikamaru stated, his eyes scanning the numerous clones.

"Precisely, it's a genjutsu to make you waste your energy fighting all the illusions as the real clone comes up to strike you. Once we kill the real clone the genjutsu should break," Neji spoke, as he was examining his surroundings.

"Where is the real clone then?!" Lee asked, exaltingly.

"There," Neji called out as he moved to strike at the water clone of Saryie that was behind Choji.

The water clone snapped and faded, breaking off the genjutsu. The team shook off their moment of fogginess as they realized they hadn't moved an inch from where they started.

"That was a tricky jutsu," Ino commented.

"Something I imagine Azumi came up with," Shikamaru drawled out.

"We need to head in a straight line to them, diverting to another path could set off another genjutsu of theirs," Neji claimed as he led his team to Team H.

Neji's team halted as they came closer to their intended target.

"Stop. There's trip wire and traps set in place," Neji stated, calmly.

"I don't see anything!" Ino whined as she was trying to eye the clearing Team H was at.

"Azumi must have cast another genjutsu on their presence," Shikamaru reasoned. "Can you see them Neji?"

"Yes. Azumi is standing on top of a dome shape barrier and Saryie is standing in front of it. They seem to be aware that we have broken their earlier genjutsu. I see Michi inside the barrier with the kunai," Neji replied as he gave more accurate details.

"My shadow possession jutsu can't stretch that far," Shikamaru muttered.

"Maybe I can get Saryie with my mind transfer jutsu if they're only just standing there," Ino offered.

"No, that's too dangerous," Shikamaru stated as he analyzed the situation.

"Where are the traps set? Maybe I can spring them and then we can move in?" Tenten asked Neji.

"That's not bad. In fact, I think that will work perfectly with my plan," Shikamaru stated as he divulged his plan.

* * *

Saryie was anxious as she waited for their unknown enemy. She had felt the transferring jutsu become activated and felt it disperse. She knew she wasn't the only one to feel it as she spied Azumi was on alert as she was examining the trees.

Azumi had set multiple lines of defense, casting another genjutsu to make the barrier invisible to the naked eye. Saryie knew because she could feel the genjutsu entering into her chakra network before breaking it.

"There's six of them," Azumi stated.

"Six? Well what the crap are they waiting for?" Saryie muttered.

The silence continued on for a moment and in an instant, kunai were thrown and shadows leapt out of the trees, faster than Saryie had anticipated. Among the dozen kunai that were thrown, three of them released the trip wire, springing free Azumi's traps.

Senbon flooded the ground as Saryie and Azumi dodged the other rogue kunai as Saryie heard a crackly voice call out "Human Boulder".

Saryie turned just in time to see Choji in boulder formation coming right to her. She jumped quickly out of his path but in mid leap she was surprised to see that Choji's rolling form did not pursue her. Choji's boulder leaped and bounced upward towards Azumi.

Before Saryie could call out to Azumi to warn her, something caught the corner of her eye as she saw a thin black shadow stretching towards her. Saryie was able to avoid getting her shadow caught by Shikamaru's shadow possession jutsu, noticing he was out of range as he stayed out of site among the trees.

Azumi was able to anticipate Choji's attack and nearly dodged it as she jumped up seconds before he blundered through where she was. Azumi twisted in midair and saw the perfect place to strike as Choji rolled passed her down Michi's barrier. Azumi threw a paralyzing senbon towards Choji's form. He was coming down from his transformation jutsu and the senbon landed underneath his retracted arm.

It was a direct hit as Azumi scanned the training grounds, noticing most of her traps had been set off to no avail. Azumi spotted Saryie jumping from the shadow on the ground. They got one opponent out of the way, only 5 more to go. Azumi had to think fast as she had to avoid an upcoming attack from the rear as Lee sprinted up Michi's barrier.

Azumi didn't want to lose her position from on top of the barrier as Lee made speedy strikes at her. Azumi threw senbon hoping to scratch Lee at least, in hopes of immobilizing him.

Saryie knew this wouldn't be easy to fight team 10 along with Team Gai. Saryie tried to think ahead which was not one of her major skills, but she had to theorize what Shikamaru was thinking. Shikamaru always thinks ahead.

Before Saryie could think any further, she was bombarded with kunai and shuriken as Tenten ran out of the trees in order to distract her. Saryie had to dodge kunai while also being aware of the shadows on the ground.

"Rising Twin Dragons," Tenten called as she leapt up in the air, summoning more weapons at her finger tips.

Saryie had to move quickly and noticed how Azumi was fighting Lee. Saryie knew she be better at hand to hand combat with Lee than Azumi. Saryie quickly created a shadow clone of herself as her other half ran up the barrier to help Azumi.

Saryie's shadow clone soon intervened with Azumi and Lee's fight, giving Azumi just enough time to send a paralyzing senbon in Tenten's direction before Azumi was in a dueling match with Ino.

The senbon that Azumi threw barely scratched the surface of Tenten's arm as she tried to evade it in midair. Tenten tried to fight through the paralyzing effects as she sent many weapons down on them, until she could no longer move her body and fell to the ground.

Neji caught Tenten's descent and placed her down carefully, before he aimed his attack of gentle fist at Saryie. Saryie paid careful attention to Neji's moves, avoiding every possible touch of his hand. He fought against her close to Michi's barrier. His gentle fist barely missing her by an inch as he struck Michi's barrier instead.

Saryie felt her shadow clone disperse as she saw Lee had defeated it. Azumi was now facing Ino and Lee together, but Saryie couldn't mind that now as Neji continued to pursue her, trying to strike her. Saryie felt she should be inwardly happy, that in fact this was technically the first time she and Neji had ever dueled together, but Saryie needed to stay focused.

Saryie could see Azumi had lost her position from on top of the barrier as Lee and Ino followed after her. Saryie smirked as she knew Azumi still had one trap left untouched. Saryie heard the tripping of the wire before a whine of the target. Saryie glanced to see Ino had fallen from one of the paralyzing senbon that was sticking out of her thigh.

Saryie soon saw how Shikamaru's shadow was back and Saryie had to jump away from it as well as keep away from Neji. Frustrated, Saryie split off a couple of water clones from herself to head to the trees to find the shadow maker, keeping away from the shadows on the gorund.

As Saryie's water clones found the shadow maker, Shikamaru was smirking in victory.

"It's all over," Shikamaru stated, drily.

Saryie's water clones became confused before they were snatched in Shikamaru's shadow possession jutsu and dispersed.

The sound of Michi's barrier breaking down, distracted Saryie as shock filled her before she was shoved away with a gust of air with Neji's air palm.

Saryie sat up to see how Shikamaru's shadow was connected to Michi's shadow from the shadow that the barrier casted.

"How?" Saryie asked breathless.

"You didn't think I was missing on purpose, did you?" Neji coolly remarked, as he blocked Saryie's path.

Saryie struggled to get up from her shaky limbs.

"I was attacking Michi's barrier, it's an entire stream of chakra all lively flowing in multiple ways. I merely was able to weaken a portion of it, creating a dead layer of skin to create a crack. That crack, would allow Shikamaru to enter Michi's barrier and possess the entire shadow of the barrier and everything in it, including Michi," Neji expressed.

Saryie grunted as she got up and tried to stop Shikamaru. Neji however blocked her, using gentle fist in order to immobilize her. Saryie could do nothing, but watch as Shikamaru walked freely out of the trees.

Saryie saw Michi mimic the action, with a kunai held in his left hand. Shikamaru marched forward with Michi meeting him half way. Shikamaru held out his right hand as his left moved for Michi to mimic. Shikamaru made Michi release the kunai and it fell into Shikamaru's hand.

Iroha appeared then, right in front of Shikamaru and Michi, declaring the test was over and that Team H failed once again.

At that moment Shikamaru dropped his jutsu and Michi was free to move. Michi soon dropped to his butt and all but sighed that it was over. Saryie saw Sakura soon run out of the trees then as she went to Ino, and began healing her senbon wound.

Iroha gathered Choji and set him aside Sakura as well, while Lee ran over to get Tenten to bring to Sakura. Azumi pulled out an antidote from her pouch as she handed it to Sakura. Azumi explained that it would lift the paralyzing affects quicker in under five minutes.

Sakura was grateful and so was the paralyzed victims who were tired of being paralyzed as they hummed their relief. The antidote was split among the three victims as Sakura continued to heal the minor injuries as the antidote took effect.

Saryie huffed. They were only able to take out 3 of the 6 and they were still unable to win. Saryie was definitely disappointed, also mostly annoyed with Neji.

Neji had come over to Saryie, kneeling beside her. She glared at him as he opened her chakra points once again.

"Don't look so bitter," Neji spoke, lightly.

"Don't look so smug then," Saryie grumbled, as she moved away from him.

Neji glared as he too moved away and went to check on his teammate Tenten.

Saryie picked herself up and went over to Michi's form that was lying on the floor.

"What was that?" Saryie commented.

"Don't blame me," Michi stated.

"I watched you! You didn't even fight Shikamaru's jutsu," Saryie accused, annoyed.

"I was spent! Do you know how much chakra it takes to keep up that barrier? I don't have much more chakra left," Michi said, defending himself.

"It doesn't mean you roll over and play dead!" Saryie retorted.

Michi waved her off as he closed his eyes, ignoring her.

"This is no one's fault, Saryie. We all have our role to play in this jutsu. This test is merely to show us our downsides and way to strength ourselves along with this jutsu," Azumi stated as she appeared, beside Saryie, her face solemn.

"She's right," Iroha spoke, addressing the team. "Like with any test, you can learn something from it. And even though you failed today, this test certainly lasted longer than the last. You are developing a stronger jutsu day by day. Just because you fail, doesn't mean you can't succeed," Iroha paused as he looked over his fellow team.

"You've still got a month left to get a better grip on that jutsu before we show case it to the Hokage. I'm wishing the best of luck to you three. You three are dismissed," Iroha expressed, evenly without a slight display of emotion as he headed over to talk with Sakura.

Team H sat beside each other as they gathered their strength, resting from the training session they had. Tenten, Ino, and Choji were soon able to move again and were in top shape. Once they were alright again, Iroha thanked team 10 and Team Gai for helping out and he thanked Sakura for the medical support.

Sakura and Ino soon headed out back to the village, Ino complaining about the wicked feeling the paralyzing poison gave her. Neji had soon departed as well wanting to head back home. Tenten soon followed suit, feeling a little nauseous from being paralyzed and from the antidote. Lee would have stayed to chat with Saryie, but gave an apologizing smile at Saryie as he helped Tenten back home. Saryie said goodbye to Lee and promised to see him soon.

Shikamaru and Choji sat in the training grounds with Team H, not willing to move so soon just like Michi. Choji opened up a bag of chips and happily began munching on them as Shikamaru laid back to look at the sky. Shikamaru offered some tips and advice on their jutsu which Azumi listened tentatively too while Michi tried to steal Choji's food.

Saryie dazed in and out of the conversation. Her body was exhausted, but she felt her brain working in overdrive as she thought about every second about her duel with Neji. She felt that she should have seen what his real target was. Her attention snapped to Shikamaru though as he called for her attention.

"Saryie, you are getting better."

* * *

 **Ok so long battle against Team Gai and Team 10 for Team H. Team H's defensive jutsu isn't perfect yet. It still has a few kinks and needs more progress. I hoped you enjoyed this chapter. It's definitely action packed. Let me know what you think.**

 **Review, please!**

 **I appreciate any review I get no matter how small it is. :)**

 **Disclaimer: I do not Own Naruto. I do own Azumi, Saryie, and Michi.**


	30. Chapter 30

**Alrighttt, Hope you had a good day, week, year. Enjoy!**

* * *

 **Stirring Emotions**

Chapter 30

Saryie woke up and greeted the morning by deciding to take a few laps around the village to stretch out her legs and get her energy out. After her team getting their butts kicked once again, Azumi suggested they rest for most of the day and meet later in the afternoon. Azumi wanted to discuss strategy and ideas for the next stage of their jutsu. Saryie knew Azumi had been working on a way to strength Saryie's role in the jutsu. Saryie was definitely curious as to what it could be.

When Saryie headed out of her apartment, she took to a sprint. Feeling the air whip pass her. It was while she was running that she happened to spy two men in green that she knew so well.

Gai and Lee were both doing pushups while standing on their hands, both counting loudly in unison.

"Lee! Gai-sensei!" Saryie called, chipper as she approached them.

"Greetings Saryie," Lee spoke as he lifted his head a bit to see her.

Gai jumped up onto his feet with Lee following right behind.

"My goodness, is that my promising young student I see before me?" Gai questioned with a smile.

"Yup, it sure is!" Saryie answered, returning the smile.

"I haven't seen you in so long, but I hear you're becoming a fine shinobi! It's all that power of youth that is overflowing within you I imagine. I hear your team hasn't failed a mission yet!" Gai exclaimed, appraisingly, with his hands on his hips.

"Yea, that's true," Saryie responded, upbeat.

"Oh great glory!" Gai spoke, happily as he grabbed Saryie and gave her a big bear hug, tears pouring out of his eyes.

"I'm so proud of you. To think I helped inspire you to be the great ninja that you are today. It is so amazing," Gai gushed in tears.

Saryie giggled at the overly flowing affection.

Gai stopped for a moment as he brought Lee into the circle for a hug as well with each arm of Gai's wrapped around one of them.

"Awe, time flies so fast. I remember when I first introduced you two to each other. Saryie had just graduated the best in her class at taijutsu from the academy and I just knew that she would make an excellent training partner for my star pupil Lee here. I was surprised by the endurance you two both shared at being the best you could be. You got defeated once or twice, Saryie, but you never gave up, you never gave up your passion. You two sparred for the first time together for nearly 2 days straight. It was remarkable. And now look at the both of you! Both of you have advanced more than I could have ever hoped and the both of you are best of friends. I couldn't be prouder," Gai said as he finished his rant, the tears in his eyes subsiding as he smiled in victory.

"Thank you, sensei, for teaching me and introducing me to one truly amazing friend," Lee spoke, choking up while trying to hold back his tears.

Saryie giggled again. "It really was hard keeping up with you for the very first time, but I knew if you weren't going to quit, I wasn't either," Saryie stated, smirking.

"And that is the motivation I was looking for!" Gai claimed as he let go of Saryie and Lee. "Now, it's time we take it up a notch. A little friendly competition," Gai announced as he parted them and walked through them to stand in front of them.

Gai drew a line in the dirt with his foot. "How about 50 laps around the village in less than 3 hours. First one to finish and make it back wins and proves they have the energy of a thousand suns! Loser takes us out for lunch," Gai stated as he smiled with his thumb up.

Saryie's smirk, turned into a grin. "You're on."

"Only 50 laps, Gai-sensei?" Lee questioned.

"Yes, my boy. Its best to keep things fair, so no removing your leg weights, Lee," Gai answered, with a wink.

"Yes sir, Gai-sensei!"

"And to even the playing field even more, I shall complete this whole race on my hands," Gai spoke, determinedly as he jumped onto his hands.

Saryie laughed. "You'll definitely be the one buying lunch then," Saryie remarked as she stood at the starting line.

"We shall see," Gai stated, confident.

"May the best winner win," Lee stated, with a smile at Saryie to which Saryie smiled back with a nod.

"Get ready… get set… go!" Gai proclaimed as they all went flying through the air, running as fast as they can.

To most people it looked like a blur of colors that sped through the village. Their feet barely touching the ground for more than one nanosecond at a time. Gai kept up for the most part until around the 30th lap where he started running out of speed on his hands. His hands were not as fast as his legs, but he sure was better at running on his hands than most. Saryie and Lee were mostly neck to neck during every lap. Sometimes Saryie would get ahead of Lee or Lee would get ahead of her.

As the last lap came around, Saryie tried to kick it up a notch. She wanted to win and as they neared the finish line, she was pulling ahead of Lee. However, Saryie heard Lee grunt and soon found him following close behind her. Saryie looked back to see stars in his eyes and they were watery as he pushed himself faster. Saryie tried to stop him, but it came too late as he ran across the finish line first.

Lee slowed to a halt, out of breath. He took a few pants of breath before he let out a victory cry. Saryie slowed to a stop too once she crossed the line. She was panting and hunched over as she tried to steady herself.

"Con… grad.. ulations" Saryie muttered to Lee with a smile as she felt she needed to sit down.

Saryie took a seat on the grass and Lee soon came up to her, handing her a bottle of water. He flopped down next to her, catching his breath as well.

"You… did great Saryie," Lee commented with a smile.

"Thanks, you're a hard one to beat... I can only imagine how much faster you must be without theses weights on," Saryie mentioned as she nudged Lee's pant leg.

Lee smiled as they rested there for a while, waiting for Gai to catch up. Gai soon showed up and he had accepted his fate that he was in last place and that he would have to buy lunch, but he continued onward to finish his 50 laps around the village. He was only on 45th lap. He had five more to go which means Saryie and Lee had to wait until he finished.

During that time Saryie reflected on her first meeting with Lee. She had been eager to face another taijutsu fighter when Gai first told her about Lee. She was at first a little envious that Gai held Lee so highly and she wanted more than anything to show that she was better. Gai was her hero after all. She wanted to impress him. She wanted to be his favorite student. Now as Saryie was grown, she saw how silly her old self was for being so envious. She knew Lee held a special place in Gai's heart because Lee reminded Gai so much of himself. It was hard for Saryie not to see the resemblance.

Saryie remembered how she struggled so hard in the first fight against Lee. Lee had been so open and friendly to her that Saryie had basically underestimated him. Lee had knocked her down a few times during the sparring match that Gai was supervising and Saryie was persistent in getting back up to fight.

Saryie had learned not to underestimate Lee and began to fight him more seriously. Lee had tested her speed and strength. Even though Saryie could not land a blow on Lee during their first fight, she quickly learned how to block his own attacks. They had sparred for 2 days straight almost like Gai-sensei had said. It wasn't until utter sleep exhaustion kicked in that they both succumbed.

It was that next day that Saryie found herself back in Kakashi's apartment that she had a letter delivered to her by Gai. Gai had told her how proud he was about the way she fought and hoped that with more taijutsu training from him and Lee that she could get better at it. When Gai had left, Saryie opened the letter from Lee who had praised her fighting skills and loved to train with her again.

It was how her friendship with Lee started. She would join Lee and Gai for training before and after her own team got done training. Soon her silly jealousy disappeared as she gained a new respect and inspiration from Lee. Lee believed in her. He believed that she could become as strong as she wanted to be and she believed in him that he could be a great ninja with only knowing taijutsu.

Saryie smiled fondly at the memory, her breathing finally returning to normal as Gai finished his 50th lap. Lee applauded Gai for finishing what he set out to do and Gai thanked him. Saryie reminded him that he now owes them both lunch which Gai weakly admitted.

The three of them then headed into the village to find a restaurant they could order food from. They spotted a couple of restaurants and finally agreed on one. When they had gone in, they placed their order. They ate their lunch in merriment as they talked about previous missions and training techniques.

As soon as lunch had ended, they headed out and were about to part ways when Saryie spied a familiar figure heading down the street.

"Dad?" Saryie called, tilting her head.

The man in question looked up from the ground as he was carrying a heavy load of groceries on his shoulders. He had dark gray hair and tiny black eyes. His face was a bit withered with age and his complexion tan. The man lifted his head at the sound of Saryie's voice.

"Ah, Saryie," Saryie's dad acknowledged, lightly.

"Hey dad, do you need any help?" Saryie questioned as she began to reach out a hand to help.

Her dad waved her hand off. "No, no, I'm good. I got it," Her dad replied with a tight smile.

"Well if it isn't Kakashi's cousin, Hachiro," Gai announced as he flashed a dazzling smile, placing his hands on his hips.

"Hello Mr. Hatake," Lee greeted as well with a smile.

Saryie's father, Hachiro, took a brief moment to greet the two ninja, putting on a small smile.

"So how have you been, Saryie?" Hachiro spoke lightly, his eyes soft.

"I've been great, Dad," Saryie answered, evenly.

"That's good to hear. Your mother told me you stopped by recently, sorry to have missed you," Hachiro responded, casually.

"It's ok. I know how you are busy most of the time. Are you sure you don't need any help?" Saryie offered, kindly, trying to analyze her father.

"No, no… I'm good, child. Trust me as long as there is life in these bones I can keep going," Her dad smiled, halfheartedly.

"That's what I like to hear. The Power of Youth will never die I always say!" Gai commented with a smile.

"Heh… yea," Hachiro agreed, awkwardly, his tone mellow as his eyes shifted back to Saryie. "Oh speaking of which, kiddo. Your mom told me how you brought a new friend home last time, I'm sad I couldn't meet him. Nao says you seem quite fond of him."

Saryie blushed. "Well, yea… he's a friend," Saryie answered, bashfully.

"Oh, a friend? Which friend?" Lee questioned, intrigued, looking over at Saryie.

"Never mind that right now, Lee," Saryie commented, waving off his question.

Hachiro smiled, slightly amused at his daughter. "Well perhaps maybe next time, I can meet him."

"Sure Dad," Saryie addressed, quickly.

"But um," Hachiro began and cough a bit hesitantly. "… I umm… would suggest not bringing him to the house. Your mother didn't seem to approve".

Saryie's mouth tightened into a firm line. "I understand."

"Good," Hachiro stated, uneasily. "I guess I'll see you some other time. I got to get back to the house. Be sure to stay safe," Hachiro said as he began to walk passed her, Lee, and Gai.

"Goodbye Lee and Gai," her dad addressed before leaving.

"Pleasure seeing you again Hachiro," Gai addressed, promptly.

"Take care Mr. Hatake!" Lee bellowed after Gai.

Lee soon looked to Saryie to see her lips pursed and eyebrows drawn down.

"You ok?" Lee asked as he placed his hand on her shoulder.

Saryie snapped out of it quickly, her face becoming relax. "Yea, I'll be fine," Saryie replied with a smile.

"Oh shoot what time is it?" Saryie questioned, suddenly.

"A little passed one…" Gai mentioned as Saryie began to depart.

"I'll see you two later! I'm late!" Saryie said, rushed as she jumped up onto buildings and started running.

She had to meet with her team now. Saryie was happy for the sudden distraction. She didn't want to dwell on her thoughts about her mom and brother. She ran as quick as she could, knowing Michi was going to use this opportunity to make a comment about her being late again.

When Saryie arrived at the training grounds, she wasn't surprised to see Azumi had her legs crossed and was meditating and to see that Michi was laying off to the side of her.

"Hey…. Look who's late again," Michi drawled, barely opening one of his eyes to look up at her. "At this rate you're going to become the slacker of the group," Michi commented, with the corners of his lips turning up in amusement.

"Don't be absurd," Saryie remarked, playing along. "No one can compete with your lack of motivation. You will always be the slacker in our group," Saryie stated with fake affection.

"Aweeee. That's so sweet. Best compliment I have ever gotten from you," Michi responded, with a chuckle, amused.

"And the last one!" Saryie stated quickly, faking her smile.

"Eh, I think I can get a few more compliments out of you," Michi teased, smirking.

Saryie was about to respond, when Azumi opened her eyes and sprang to her feet.

"Enough chattering. I want to discuss the next stage or aspect of our jutsu," Azumi stated, clearly, eyeing Saryie.

Michi sat up at that, slightly yawning. "Alright, what do we have to do for the next stage?" Michi asked, calmly.

"This next stage won't involve your efforts in the jutsu, Michi. You already the have the main responsibility to hold and maintain a barrier," Azumi stated evenly, her eyes leaving Michi to Saryie's once again.

"Oh thank goodness. I'll be lying here if you need me then," Michi spoke as he already fell back down to the ground, sighing. "This is the life."

Saryie rolled her eyes at Michi's behavior. She would never be as much of a slacker as him.

"Saryie," Azumi called.

Saryie attention snapped back to Azumi with a questioning stare. "What?"

"This next part of our jutsu is centered on if you can master this jutsu," Azumi stated as she slipped her hand into her poncho to reveal a book.

The book looked worn and old as Azumi opened it to the page of her desire. Azumi then displayed the page to Saryie, gesturing for her to take it.

Saryie took it willingly and scanned the page. It was a water jutsu with vague instructions on how to perform it and explanations of the jutsu.

"You want me to master this? The Octopus Barrier Defense?" Saryie asked, skeptical and confused.

"Yes," Azumi answered, without hesitation. "This jutsu was discover and recorded in the Land of Water. It's a jutsu that shapes the water from a water source around the user as a barrier. It can then lash out in whips of water and attack approaching enemies. The main aspect of this jutsu I want you to focus on is mastering the water barrier part of the jutsu, then incorporate your water clones into the mix as its defense," Azumi explained.

"Ok… but I don't get it… What does this have to do with anything?" Saryie questioned, intrigued.

"You stated that you can't make water clones from other water clones unless you had a water source nearby, right?" Azumi addressed, a little annoyed.

"Yes, but…"

"Well this water barrier will give you the source of water you need to create an outward attack of water clones."

"Where will the source of this water come from for the barrier though?" Saryie asked.

"I will take care of that part. Much like the seals on the scrolls I designed to transport jutsu. I will make a similar seal that can transport the water from the river by Konoha to wherever the receiving scroll is. That way you won't have to use up all of your chakra to create the amount of water needed. You can perform the jutsu with existing water already supplied," Azumi stated, rationally.

Saryie nodded in understanding as she took a look at the book again, before looking back up. "How will this help again?"

"Simple. Michi is at the center of this jutsu, which he will be protected by being inside his own barrier. For us, it was easy to see we were too exposed in the last test run we had. We need a second barrier to be cast around us, but not just any barrier. A barrier that can fight back. With a water styled barrier around us, I can observe our surroundings with better ease and focus on casting the genjutsu. The enemy would first have to get passed my two layers of genjutsu and then they would come upon your water barrier, where you can extract as many water clones as you like on the enemy or perform any other water jutsu attack. This water jutsu will help keep us from being attacked or ambushed," Azumi finished explaining.

"I understand," Saryie stated, her tone serious.

"It's essential you learn how to master that jutsu," Azumi stated.

"I will," Saryie spoke determinedly and she knew she had a lot of training ahead of her.

* * *

 **Well yayyy. I struggled so hard with figuring out where to go with this chapter. I only want to show you guys the important stuff and not just have chapters that don't get the plot nowhere. I hope you enjoyed. You got to see a bit of Saryie's past with Lee and saw the relationship she has with her father as opposed to her mother. Stay tune for more.!**

 **Thank you.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. I do own Saryie, Michi, and Azumi.**


	31. Chapter 31

**Okay, so someone had asked a while ago why Saryie has a dislike of Kakashi so hopefully this chapter will explain it. It's not that Kakashi is a bad guy or anything but Saryie just has a different outlook on him. So Enjoy. Hopefully my Kakashi is in character. Don't hate me.**

 **Remember this is Saryie's perspective of Kakashi after living with him for a while.**

 **Also just to let you all know, I posted some more drawings on my deviantart of some of the side characters like the villains and family members and stuff. Username on there is simplyplain42.**

* * *

 **Stirring Emotions**

Chapter 31

It was during the next few days that Saryie struggled. She was training by the river that Azumi had talked about in order to master this Octopus Barrier Defense jutsu, which Saryie was going to change the name of once she added her own spin on the jutsu. Saryie had studied all the contents on the few pages that the jutsu was described in. The jutsu seemed simple on paper but casting it was a different story. She couldn't even get the water to form right.

It rose up slightly at her knees before dispersing back into the river. She could not get it to form around her form in a dome-like fashion and maintain it. Saryie was getting frustrated at her lack of progress. It reminded her of her early days in the academy when she struggled with ninjutsu.

Saryie began performing the hands signs again for the jutsu before trying again. With still no such luck, Saryie swore bitterly. Her team was counting on her. Azumi had definitely expressed that this addition to their jutsu was important. Saryie huffed again as she concentrated on her chakra.

The water still did not form or bend to her liking. Saryie sighed, loudly. There must be something she was missing. This was too hard for her to figure out on her own, if she wanted faster results, she was going to have to ask the one person she knew that might know how to perform this jutsu.

With a heavy sigh, she treaded back up to the village of Konoha and made her way to Kakashi's apartment. She figured he would be good consulting guide since he has large knowledge of foreign jutsu and knows how each is cast because of his sharingan eye. Saryie just hoped that he had at least seen this jutsu in practice before. Then she would have to be concerned about bugging him to help her master it.

Saryie arrived at the front of Kakashi's door and began knocking. There was no answer at first so Saryie kept knocking, soon she heard rustling and noise inside the apartment. The door swung open as Kakashi stood in his lounge-around clothes and mask in front of her. He seemed mildly surprised that she was at his door.

"Still in your pjs?" Saryie asked, knowing it was passed noon already.

"I had a long night. Plus, I wasn't expecting any company any time soon…" Kakashi mentioned dryly, unashamed as he stifled a yawn.

"I need your help," Saryie stated, bluntly.

"Hmmm? You need my help?" Kakashi spoke, slightly amused.

"Have you heard of this jutsu?" Saryie questioned as she lifted the book to his face.

Kakashi eyed it briefly before staring back at her. "What of it?"

"I need to master it. Do you know it or not?" Saryie asked, impatient.

"I've seen it once," Kakashi mentioned, briefly, a bored tone dripping from his voice.

"Great! Teach me," Saryie stated.

"You said it was passed noon?" Kakashi drawled as he stepped back into his apartment leaving his door wide open.

"Oh my gosh. Don't change the subject!" Saryie spoke, rushing after him.

She followed him inside his apartment. It wasn't the messiest apartment she had seen, but Kakashi had a knack of leaving things around in strange places. It was never trash or dirty dishes, but an occasional book lying half open on the couch or on the floor. His weapons were left out of place, on his key rack or on the floor. He'd leave an abandoned shirt on the floor too, much like he forgot where they go.

His apartment felt much like the way she left it when she moved out. She wasn't much of a neat freak either, but she definitely tidied up more than he did. A layer of dust still accompanied the floor in parts of the apartment that weren't used much. Saryie knew Kakashi didn't have many guests over. He preferred his privacy and wasn't inclined to having many people over.

Kakashi moved into his bedroom as he began to strip off his shirt, closing the door behind him. When he came out again, he was dressed in his shinobi attire as he went to gather a few spare kunai left on his kitchen counter.

"Oh, you're still here?" Kakashi spoke, acting surprised.

"Yes!" Saryie stated, becoming a bit annoyed. "I need you to teach me that jutsu."

"I'm afraid it's going have to wait, I have a meeting I must attend that I'm already late for," Kakashi responded as he strode over to his front door.

"What? How late are you?" Saryie asked, bewildered.

"An hour," Kakashi answered as he gestured her to leave his apartment so he could lock the door.

"Oh my gosh! How can you be that late?" Saryie questioned, hotly.

"I overslept. Thank you by the way for that wakeup call or I'm afraid I would have been even more late than I normally am. Anyhow, later," Kakashi stated as he was locking the door, he then waved his hand as he began to head out.

"I didn't come here to wake you up. I need your help and I'm not going to stop bugging you until you do," Saryie stated, determinedly as she followed after him.

Kakashi eyed her slightly, his mask hiding his amusement. "If you say so, but I have to warn you my next few errands will be very boring for you," Kakashi mentioned, with a light tone.

"I don't care, I'm not leaving till you help me," Saryie announced.

"Suit yourself," Kakashi mumbled as he continued on.

Kakashi's few errands were uninteresting. At first he met with someone from the Inuzuka clan to which Saryie couldn't listen in on and had to wait outside the house. That's when she happened to run into Kiba yet again as he greeted her and rubbed it into her face how he heard her team got their butts kicked. Annoyed, Saryie told him to start perfecting his own jutsu and Kiba told her to stop being a sore loser to which, Saryie exclaimed she would kick his butt. Kakashi soon exited the house and was on his way yet again, leaving Saryie unable fulfill her threat, letting Kiba have the last word.

She then followed Kakashi to the grave stone of his fallen comrades and Saryie bit her lip, knowing he was paying his respects. They stood there for what felt like an hour before Kakashi moved on to a few grocery shops, saying hi to a few familiar faces. He didn't buy much, only a bag full of stuff and Saryie tried to rush him to finish his errands.

When she finally got him to almost turn back to go home, he happened to run into Gai. Saryie begged Gai not to challenge him today that she was trying to get Kakashi to show her a new jutsu. Gai became excited and stated that his challenge would be the fastest one yet and told Saryie not to worry. Saryie sighed loudly as Gai challenged Kakashi to thumb wrestling challenge.

Saryie swore it took 30 minutes as Kakashi and Gai 's thumbs were a blur of motion, each too fast to catch the other one's thumb. When Kakashi had won, Gai swore he would get the betterment of his rival and that he would train harder.

When Gai left, she and Kakashi headed back to his apartment so he could put his nonperishable food away before he decided he wanted to eat. She sat on Kakashi's couch, eyeing him, making sure he didn't escape as she waited for him.

Saryie knew it was already 5 in the evening and could feel her impatience growing. Saryie had a hard time dealing with Kakashi. At first when she was younger she had been proud of him. He was this great ninja, a prodigy from his youth… but when others tried to compare her worth to his that was when she grew disdainful towards him. That was before she got to live with him though…

When she had moved in with him, she was expecting a different picture of him. Kakashi was after all a very skilled, intelligent, and talented ninja. The sharingan just amplified his abilities and gave him the nickname the Copycat ninja. She was expecting him to be more well put together… but once she moved in with him… she got to see that he wasn't all that put together.

She was confused how such a great ninja could forget to eat and sleep for a time. She remembered living with him and how he would disappear at hours at a time without a word, leaving her with Pakkun for company.

Pakkun had always said he was only told to watch over her while Kakashi was gone. She was never told where Kakashi went and why. He would just leave. She would often have to restock the fridge herself while she was living there with him. He would come home and honestly be surprised how there was food in the kitchen, half the time.

Saryie had no idea what went on in Kakashi's head, because he often remained silent and just read his smutty books. Saryie didn't understand why he lived solemnly. She had tried asking of course. She would blurt out questions to try and get to know him better, but he would just change the subject or joke around. He never gave her any serious answers.

Saryie didn't understand how this man could be the Copycat ninja feared by many others. All she saw was a man who dragged his feet across his apartment and half forgetting what time it was.

She soon learned she would never get the answers to the questions she had so desperately asked to understand him. He kept her at a distance and from what she could tell… he kept most people at a distance…

Even though Saryie had a very standoffish relationship with Kakashi, she was still grateful that he had offered her a bed when her family kicked her out of the house. He was still a part of her family and even though she often became frustrated with him, she still appreciated him for being there for her.

Saryie's attention drifted back to the present as Kakashi offered her a bowl of instant ramen. Saryie accepted as he placed a steaming hot bowl in front of her on the coffee table within a few seconds.

Once they were done, Saryie once again asked if he could teach her the jutsu.

Kakashi had sighed, as he asked for Saryie's book once again. After scanning the page and reading the contents, he closed it and handed it back to her.

"The instructions are missing one of the hand signs and the other hand signs are reversed. What's the importance of the jutsu to you?" Kakashi questioned, evenly.

"I need to master it for the defense jutsu my team is working on. It's a second barrier so that no one can get to Michi's barrier right away and that I can have the opportunity to attack with full scale water ninjutsu," Saryie explained, going into details about the jutsu.

Kakashi listened attentively as he nodded in understanding. "Sounds like a large task," Kakashi stated.

"So will you please show me how the jutsu works?!" Saryie questioned.

"Why not? There's still a few hours of daylight left to kill," Kakashi stated, with a small smile under his mask.

"Thank you!" Saryie bellowed as she jumped up to hug him

Kakashi patted her awkwardly on the back as she let go. He scratched his head as he suggested that they can head over to the river.

Saryie agreed and followed after him to the river. It was then that Kakashi perform the hand signs slowly for Saryie to witness as he performed the jutsu. The jutsu was cast perfectly as the water formed and circled him in a half dome.

Kakashi mentioned a few tips and the way that the chakra needed to flow through Saryie's body. Saryie then tried to execute the jutsu one more time, but the dome half formed to which Kakashi told her she wasn't exerting the right amount of chakra.

Saryie tried five more times until she finally got the water dome to circle around for at least a couple of seconds before it snapped again. Saryie grunted frustrated, but Kakashi praised her that it was a good start, that she just need more practice and feel for the jutsu.

As Saryie continued on training, Kakashi took his leave for the night. Saryie shouted her thanks after him to which he just smiled and poofed away. Saryie went on training for the rest of the night until ten before deciding she needed to head home.

She picked back up her training in the morning as she got an early start. The more times she cast the jutsu, the more she was getting the hang of it, but her chakra was running thin by late afternoon. The longest she was able to keep the barrier up was for 5 minutes but she knew she could do better than that. Plus, the fact that she still had to incorporate a way to use her water clones with this jutsu weighed on her mind.

She was barely scratching the surface of this jutsu and she had a lot more of it to master. Saryie sighed loudly as she let herself take a break besides the river. She laid down on the soft dirt as she stared up at the sky. She had to quietly laugh at herself after a few seconds passed by. She felt how Michi did after every training session.

She let her mind trail off into deeper thoughts as she relaxed her chakra depleted body. Her mind traveled to her last mission where they had to defeat Rye. He took advantage of so many women… He treated them like property… It made Saryie want to beat the crap out of him all over, but Kakashi had taken his life from him. Even though the matter was finished, Saryie couldn't help but think about all the wickedness in the world. About how the strong prey on the weak…

That's why Saryie found it so important she trained hard every day. To get stronger every day. She wanted to protect the weak from the strong. She wanted to protect those who can't protect themselves… especially the ones she cares about the most.

Why can't her mother see that? That she became a ninja to protect them, to fight for the innocent, for the weak. But all her mother saw was that it was somebody else's job to do that. That they didn't need to become ninja. That the ninja world is brutal and gruesome and terrifying… and to her mother, her family weren't meant to be ninjas, that they shouldn't be exposed to such a lifestyle of viciousness and anxiety.

Saryie only came to understand the dangers of the ninja world when she finally graduated from the academy, but at first to her, it was important to protect the ones you love. She had experienced the terror and helplessness of a victim in need of saving. She didn't want to be helpless ever again. She was going to be strong. She was going to be helpful and protect the ones she loves, no matter what… at whatever cost.

Saryie accepted the way of the ninja. She knew that it wasn't going to be very pretty, but she had accepted that to protect those that can't protect themselves… and hopefully one day her mother will see it that way and be willing to accept it.

* * *

 **Ok, so I ended this on a bit of a melodramatic tone. But don't worry! It will be a lot more fun next chapter. Also do not hate me for the way I portrayed Kakashi. I mean he's a great character and a good ninja, but I feel like in his alone time… he spends a lot of time moping around his house. I feel like he often lets time escape him because of well his past… But anywho! Saryie doesn't know much about his past except his dad died at a young age so she only gets an idea of why he is how he is.**

 **Hope you like, and just let me know how you feel in review.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. I own Saryie, Azumi, and Michi.**


	32. Chapter 32

**Alright, I know last couple of chapters hadn't featured Sai much, but don't worry stuff of him is coming up. Also I like to mention updates will be quicker cause I mapped out and finished this part of Saryie and Team H's story. I want to get this story all posted and finished before school starts. Then during school I hope to work on the outline for the sequel to this story. So just a heads up.**

* * *

 **Stirring Emotions**

Chapter 32

"Saryie."

"Saryie."

"Wake up."

Saryie felt someone nudging at her side. She groggily began to stir. She opened her eyes only to blink a few times in confusion as the sky was lit with the setting sun creating oranges and pinks in the sky.

Saryie slowly moved her hand to her face as she sat up, noticing she was still by the river bank. She must have fallen asleep when she decided to take a break. Ugh, and now her day was all gone.

"It's not wise to fall asleep out in the open so carelessly."

Saryie's head quickly turned to the direction of the voice, noticing Azumi crouching beside her. Azumi's face looked expressionless, but Saryie saw Azumi's eyes were analyzing her.

"I didn't mean to," Saryie replied, casually, rubbing her eyes.

"I'm assuming you've been working on that new jutsu I asked you to master," Azumi stated, evenly.

"Yes, I have," Saryie answered. "What are you doing out here anyway?"

"I came to inform you that I think I finished the seal that will let you transfer water from the river to you. I was going to let you test it out, but it seems you're a little out of commission right now," Azumi spoke as she began to stand up.

"No! Wait! Let me try it out!" Saryie called as she sprung up to her feet and felt a bit of a head rush.

Azumi turned in time to see the change in Saryie's facial features. "No. We will wait for tomorrow. Take the night off for now; straining your body, only hinders your progress," Azumi advised, calmly.

Saryie reluctantly agreed.

Azumi began to depart, but Saryie followed after her since she might as well call it quits for the day.

"So how did you get the seal to work to transport the water to the receiving scroll?" Saryie asked.

"Much like a summoning scroll, I was able to have the water be transported into a seal by placing a seal at the bottom of the river so that it can be transported to the receiving seal when activated. Once you get done using the seal, the water will be transported back to the river," Azumi expressed dryly, walking at an even pace.

"Wow… did you have to swim to the bottom of the river to put it there?" Saryie asked, curious.

"Yes, it took multiple attempts and multiple seals," Azumi spoke, carefully.

"Where's the receiving seal?"

"Right here," Azumi answered, pulling a scroll from under her poncho. "But like I said before, you can test it out tomorrow."

When the two entered into Konoha again, they strolled through the streets. The smell of food hitting their nostrils. Just when Saryie was going to offer if Azumi would like to go get something to eat, her attention snapped to 3 fellow ninja who called her name.

"Saryie!" Lee called as he approached her along with Sakura and Tenten. "Come to dinner with us, yea?!" Lee spoke energetically.

"Sure," Saryie easily agreed, smiling at her friend. "Let me just go home and shower first. Where you guys going to be at?"

"At the Karune Karaoke restaurant," Tenten answered, cheerfully.

"Ok, cool. I'll see you guys there," Saryie stated.

"You are welcome to join us too, Azumi," Lee mentioned, kindly as his eyes shifted over to Saryie's silent teammate.

"Thanks for the invitation, but I won't be joining you," Azumi stated, evenly.

"Ah, okay. So I'll see you later Saryie, and I'll be sure to save you a seat," Lee mentioned with a smile as the three began to turn away.

"I'll make sure to bring Sai for you!" Sakura called with a wink, to which Saryie blushed slightly.

"Alright, bye!" Saryie called as Lee, Sakura, and Tenten departed.

Saryie tried to shake off her embarrassment and noticed Azumi was staring after the three thoughtfully.

"You sure you don't want to come tonight? You know you're always welcome," Saryie asked carefully, to which Azumi cut her off with her piercing stare.

"I'm quite sure. I spent enough time searching for you today. I have some other matters at home that I need to address for the night," Azumi stated, evenly. "Have a fun evening," Azumi spoke before she took her leave back to her house.

Saryie sighed and kind of felt bad as she raced off to her own apartment to quickly get showered. Once she was all showered and clean, Saryie headed back out to the karaoke restaurant Tenten had mentioned.

Saryie could hear the music playing from outside the restaurant when she approached it. Saryie had to smile as she heard a very unskilled voice trying to sing. When she had entered the restaurant the smell of food reminded her how hungry she still was. The restaurant was packed with people but it was easy to spot her group of friends that took up four circular tables placed in a shape of a diamond.

"Hey, hey look who it is," Kiba announced as Saryie approached.

Lee bounded up as he slung his arm around Saryie.

"Saryie! My splendid friend! I'm so happy you came!"

Saryie hugged Lee back. "Thanks for inviting me."

"That's no problem. Like I told Naruto today, it has been a awhile since we all sat in the company of our friends and have had a good time. One of us is always off on missions and it's rare for us to all get together at one point. BUT HERE we all are. All abundantly happy and surrounded by great food," Lee declared at which point Saryie's stomach grumbled.

"Speaking of which, I really need to eat," Saryie commented, with a slight laugh.

"Oh yes of course! I save you a seat like I promised!" Lee spoke, eagerly as he gestured to a chair at the table where he and Tenten were sitting.

Saryie waved and greeted a few other people at the tables before she sat down. Naruto, Kiba, and Sai were at one small table farthest from her table. Shikamaru, Choji and Michi were at the next table before Naruto's table and then it was Sakura, Ino, Hinata at the table besides Michi's table. Her companions already had food placed in front of them while others had a drinks.

As Saryie waved in greeting, her eyes locked onto Sai's, who smiled back at her. Saryie soon took her seat that was by Lee and ordered some food from the waitress walking by.

Once Saryie got her food, she dug in knowing she was extremely famished. That was when Michi leaned over from his table and teased her over her shoulder.

"Geesh, if I didn't know any better I thought you were Choji, the way you're gobbling down your meal," Michi spoke, playfully.

"Keep it up and I'mma tell Choji that you called him fat," Saryie warned, as she continued eating.

"Hm, such a firecracker you are," Michi stated as he leaned away surrendering with a smirk.

Saryie soon finished her meal and then started to pay attention to the conversations around her. Naruto was babbling about his recent mission to Kiba as Sai was correcting him on certain parts. Shikamaru and Michi were discussing recent events and changes within their respective clans, while Choji was still chowing down food. Sakura was talking about her latest shift at the hospital to Ino and Hinata.

Saryie settled back into listening into her own table's conversation as Tenten and Lee were commenting about the karaoke singer. The singer was not musically gifted but did know how to entertain as they danced along the tiny stage to the music.

"Hey Saryie?" Tenten called for her attention.

"Yea?" Saryie turned in her chair to face Tenten.

"Lee's been telling me that you been working on a new jutsu," Tenten stated, trying to start a conversation.

"Yea, it's coming along. I think I'm going to get the hang of it sometime soon," Saryie replied with a smile.

"That's great! You know it would be great if we could train together sometime. I know how you always train with Lee and I with Neji, but you know it's good to switch things up," Tenten spoke, cheery.

Saryie smiled. "Yea that sounds great. I don't know how you put up with captain killjoy so much. He literally sucks the fun out of everything by being so serious all the time," Saryie commented, lightly.

Tenten laughed slightly at that. "He can be quite a party pooper, but I've learned to accept him for who he is," Tenten agreed, happily.

"He is the brains of our group, to be honest. Much like Tenten is the sword, and I am the MIGHTY POWER OF YOUTH AND AT the HEART of our group is GAI-SENSEI," Lee declared, triumphantly.

"Lee keep your voice down, people are going to start staring," Tenten gushed, nervously.

"As I always say….. LET THEM STARE!" Saryie spoke out loud to Tenten further embarrassment.

"YES, WE Should not have to hide ourselves from the world." Lee continued, standing up, smiling at Saryie with a fist raised in the air.

Saryie's grin grew wider as she giggled, standing up. "Let them all experience the power of our—"

Saryie's speech was cut off by Michi's hand as he had gotten up from his table.

"YOUTHHHHH," Lee finished her sentence as Tenten tried to pull Lee back down in his seat.

"Oh boy," Michi muttered as he withdrew his hand from Saryie's mouth.

Saryie smirked as a waitress came over and told their party to keep it down, that paying customers come to perform and don't like to have their spotlight stolen. She then told them if they want to cause a scene they have to wait in line to use the karaoke stage like the rest. Michi rubbed his hair and sold Saryie out saying it was her before he sat down.

Saryie and Lee both apologized to the waitress before sitting down. Once they sat down, they both shared a large grin, finding the scene amusing.

"Oh, I swear you two can't go anywhere together without causing a scene," Tenten muttered, with a sigh of relief.

Saryie laughed. "You need to loosen up Tenten. You have to live in the present," Saryie commented.

"It is true, Tenten. You have to live in the moment that youth has blessed you with," Lee spoke, upbeat.

"I would be blessed if you two didn't start causing a scene again," Tenten muttered.

"No promises," Saryie stated, with a smirk.

Lee laughed heartily. "Good one."

"So where is Neji tonight?" Saryie asked, mostly out of curiosity.

"He didn't want to come tonight," Tenten replied, honestly.

"He complained how the karaoke restaurant didn't suit him; that it was too loud and filled with tone deaf people. He said he prefer ripping out his own eardrums rather than listening to the wailings of a dying sea urchin… or something to that effect," Lee expressed, in a mellow voice.

"Sounds like Neji," Saryie muttered with a roll of her eyes as Tenten laughed hesitantly.

"What of your other teammate, Saryie?" Tenten questioned.

"You mean Azumi?"

"Yea, you know I never see her around much. The first chance I got to meet her was during that test Iroha had us preform."

"Are you talking about that tall brooding girl with the needles?" Ino questioned, intervening on Saryie's table's conversation when Saryie was about to respond.

"Yes, the one who jabbed us with those senbon. I was just telling Saryie how I don't see her around often," Tenten expressed.

"I for one am glad I don't get to see her around. Those stupid senbon that she stabbed me with, hurt. Look I still have the mark; you see?" Ino spoke, loudly with distaste as she gestured to the scrape on her thigh.

"Yea, I still have the mark too," Tenten commented. "She had precise accuracy which I can admire," Tenten spoke without distain.

"How come Azumi didn't come join us tonight?" Sakura asked loudly so that she could be heard across the two tables.

"Tch, probably because she has no people skills," Ino mentioned, with bitterness.

"Azumi likes to keep to herself," Saryie stated, carefully, turning her chair slightly two look between their two tables.

"Hm, well I'm glad, I don't think I can handle another nasty bite from those senbon of hers," Ino spoke, deliberately.

"Yea, that paralyzing stuff is no joke," Tenten agreed, recalling the effects.

Michi snickered. "She's a Heizu descendant."

"A Heizu?" Tenten questioned, looking over at Michi who carelessly had his arm over the back of his chair to interject on their conversation.

"Yea that's right," Sakura mentioned, bringing attention back to her table. "The Heizu clan was known for helping Konoha create sleeping aids and numbing agents for patients. However, they been more known for crafting their own paralyzing toxin."

"Didn't most of the Heizu clan get wiped out in the 2nd Great Ninja War though?" Kiba interjected loudly, joining in on the conversation.

"That's right," Shikamaru dryly answered, his chair closest to Sakura's table. "Their numbers dwindled even further after the 3rd Great War. I believe Azumi is the latest descendent of the clan," Shikamaru remarked, looking over at Michi for confirmation.

"Yea, Azumi and her dad are the only remaining members from the Heizu clan," Michi commented, eyeing Ino and Tenten.

"Her dad is still around? My father use to work with him," Ino spoke, surprised, having to turn around in her chair to looked at Michi.

"Yea, my dad did too," Shikamaru responded, boredly. "He said the man was a real stickler and orderly. He never liked things that didn't go as plan."

"He used to be a great shinobi though," Choji spoke up from his empty plate of food across the two tables.

"What d-does he d-do now?" Hinata shyly asked, staring pass Sakura and Ino at Michi.

"He's a bit retired," Michi answered, coolly, his eyes connecting with Saryie's briefly who seemed cautious. "Any who without Azumi we probably wouldn't have made it through the chunin exams if she weren't on our team," Michi commented casually, changing subjects.

"I'm sure we would have still found a way to pass the exams," Saryie interjected with a smirk.

"Aw the chunin exams," Sakura breathed out as her mind drifted back.

"It definitely seemed like it was yesterday that we were all genin," Ino commented, lightly, turning back in her chair as well in thought.

"Yea and we've all gotten a lot stronger since then and I've learned a lot more amazing jutsu as well," Naruto spoke boastfully, his seat furthest from everyone.

"Hell yea! We've all gotten much stronger since then and have mastered more jutsu," Kiba added, all fired up, next to Naruto and closest to Choji at the other table.

"What else have you mastered, Kiba? Besides teaching Akamaru to pee while spinning," Saryie questioned, snarky, turning slightly to give him a questioning look.

"A lot of new stuff!" Kiba muttered, defensively, his voice raising.

"Yea, you know Kiba, I really haven't seen you perform any other kind of jutsu since the chunin exams," Naruto commented as he rubbed his chin, thinking really hard.

"So?! Doesn't mean I haven't learned new stuff! I know tons of new jutsu," Kiba stated, stubbornly.

"Yea, like what? Teaching Akamaru to catch his tail?" Naruto taunted.

"NO! I've learned greater and more powerful jutsu than yours!" Kiba argued, angry.

"Just drop it already," Shikamaru stated, slightly irritated. "We don't need that waitress coming back over here."

Naruto and Kiba ignored Shikamaru's warning as they continued egging each other on, catching the stares of other customers around them.

"Are you going to finish that?" Choji asked, nudging Shikamaru.

"No, here you go buddy," Shikamaru answered.

"Thanks pal," Choji said, before diving into the meat once again.

Ino sighed, "Boys," as Naruto and Kiba continued arguing, causing a scene.

Lee stood up quickly and went over to them, trying to settle the matter. Sai had commented that both of them are knuckle heads, but the winner of a fight would obviously be Naruto. Naruto had cheered and gloated at that as Kiba got in Sai's face right when Lee tried to calm Kiba down.

"Oh Kiba… he r-really shouldn't l-let what o-others say about him rile him u-up so much," Hinata mentioned, concerned.

Sakura scoffed, a bit annoyed. "They sure do look older, but they really haven't matured," Sakura stated to which most of the girls agreed.

When the boys were distracted, that was when Ino turned back to Sakura. Ino's back was towards Saryie as she looked Sakura dead in the eye.

"Speaking of boys. Sakura, do you know if Sai is looking to date anyone?" Ino asked, lowly, but Saryie was able to hear the tail end of it

Saryie looked over Ino's shoulder at Sakura. Sakura's eyes briefly met Saryie's before staring back at Ino.

"Well, I don't know…" Sakura stated, hesitantly.

"Oh come on. You're teammates with him, you must know his type at least," Ino insisted.

"I'm not positive, but I think he's already taken…" Sakura tried to say, making sure their conversation stayed quiet as to the boys couldn't overhear.

"What? By who?" Ino blurted out to which Sakura did not want to say

"Me," Saryie stated, bluntly, standing up.

Ino looked behind her, skeptical. "You're dating him?" Ino asked, incredulously.

"Well, yes, sorta… not officially but yes," Saryie spoke up.

Ino gave a short laugh as she stood up. "If it's not official, then he's not really yours," Ino stated. "Have you two even kissed yet?"

At this point, the boy's loud ruckus had subsided and the attention of the others were drawn to Ino and Saryie. Lee looked confused as did Naruto and Kiba as to why Ino and Saryie were glaring at each other. Hinata was a bit nervous as she watched on, biting her lip not knowing what to say. Sakura seemed to want to intervene but didn't know how. Michi, Shikamaru, Choji watched on in silent amusement, wanting to see how this played out. Saryie saw out of the cornor of her eye that Tenten made a quick dash from their table. Sai who looked emotionless was keeping a steady gaze on Saryie.

"No, but you don't have to kiss to be dating," Saryie spoke, irritated.

Lee quickly stepped over to them.

"Ladies, let us not fight."

"Yes its really silly to fight over boys," Sakura mentioned, half standing.

"It wouldn't be much of a fight," Saryie commented.

"Ha! What a laugh." Ino voiced, after a moment of glaring. Ino sat back down, her head held high as she remarked hotly. "I wouldn't even want to waste chakra on you".

Saryie's fist tightened as she really wanted to fight but Lee placed his hands on her shoulders and bent down to be eye level with her. He tried to calm her down and it soon worked as Saryie got over it, but Ino's belittlement was just fire under her skin.

It was then that Tenten bounded up to them, returning.

"I signed you two both up for karaoke! It's your turn. Like you say, it's best to live in the moment," Tenten commented, laughing a little awkwardly.

Saryie knew now that Tenten had left purposefully to sign them up and give them a distraction. Lee cheered as he brought Saryie along to the stage. Saryie let her anger go as she began to cheer up at Lee's goofy antics.

As the two began to sing on stage, it was when the boys had their own little discussion.

"Who were Ino and Saryie talking about? And who hasn't kissed who yet?" Naruto questioned, loudly.

"They were talking about Sai," Shikamaru answered, evenly, turning around in his chair to face them.

"What?" Naruto questioned shocked. "Say Sai, are you really dating Saryie?"

Before Sai had a chance to answer, Kiba stole his thunder.

"Of course not, you dingdong. They only just been hanging out," Kiba mentioned, with a snarky attitude.

"Oh I see…" Naruto muttered, as his eyes shifted over to Kiba.

"That's not true. Me and Saryie have gone on a few dates," Sai spoke up, sitting straighter in his chair.

"But you two aren't a couple?" Naruto questioned, quirking his eyebrow confused, leaning into the table towards Sai.

"I'm not sure," Sai responded as he looked between Naruto and Kiba.

"Well, have you guys kissed and stuff?" Naruto asked, his face suspicious.

"No," Sai answered, honestly.

"Then you're not a couple. Couples kiss and stuff," Kiba stated proudly, relaxing into his chair with a smirk.

"Yea, that's true," Naruto agreed, nodding his head. "Plus I bet you two are just hanging out. I can't really see someone actually wanting to date you, Sai," Naruto commented, offhandedly as he too went to lean back into his seat.

"Ouch, that's not really kind of you to say," Sai mentioned, yet his facial features did not change.

"I didn't mean it like that Sai. But…. I mean if Saryie and you haven't kissed by now… maybe you're just reading things all wrong," Naruto spoke, bluntly, scratching his cheek slightly.

Sai thought long and hard on that note as the others dived into their own conversations. Sai turned to watch the karaoke stage as Lee and Saryie began singing and dancing goofily. Sai watched the way Saryie's hair fanned out and twirled in her ponytail. He saw how her eyes were bright with joy and how she laughed sweetly at Lee. He felt his heart began to race as he watched her from his table. Was it possible that Naruto could be right? Could he be reading the signs wrong? Some part of him wished that wasn't the case.

* * *

 **Wow so… idk, hope you enjoy this drama enriched chapter. It was very hard for me to incorporate almost all of the rookie nine at the dinner table. Dialogue with a big group of characters is not my forte… I mean I have had a little experience writing such things in my last Naruto drama fanfiction but that was set in a different universe where I was more free to break their characters a bit. Here is more difficult because I have to keep it all relevant to the Naruto series so idk. But I hoped you like it and enjoyed.**

 **Please Review**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. Only Michi, Azumi and Saryie.**


	33. Chapter 33

**Remember we're still before season 8 here. Enjoy.**

* * *

 **Stirring Emotions**

Chapter 33

Saryie woke up later than normal the next day. She had almost slept in till noon. The previous night lasted longer than expected, plus with the fact that she had trained hard all day yesterday, she was exhausted. Last night, she and Lee must of sang about three songs a piece. The crowd at the restaurant had cheered on their enthusiasm, egging them on. Lee and her competed in who could give a better performance.

The crowd was upbeat and applauded their efforts. Kiba and Naruto got rowdy as they judged from the sidelines. The night definitely was fun and cheery as everyone was able to finally relax and have a good time. Sai had offered to walk Saryie home, but Michi had accompanied them as well. To his defense though, his clan's compound was in the same direction. They said their goodbyes briefly as Saryie headed into her apartment for the night.

Now Saryie felt guilty for sleeping in so late. She was supposed to be training. She had to work on her new jutsu. Saryie picked herself up out of bed and started to get ready. The first thing she had to do was go and get the scroll Azumi had designed to continue with her training.

Saryie left her apartment as soon as she could. She headed over to Azumi's single-story house that was towards the outward perimeter of the village among other similar houses. Saryie arrived at Azumi's front door and knocked patiently.

Saryie was greeted by Azumi's father, Isamu, as he opened the door roughly. His sharp eyes gazed up at Saryie from his wheel chair, his mouth set in a firm line. Saryie tried to smile as she felt the tension immediately radiating off from Isamu. Azumi had many of Isamu's features, such as his eyes and his hair color. Isamu also had a ragged scar that cut across where his right ear use to be that slanted up through his eyebrow. His hair was neatly combed back from his face and reached his neckline. He waited patiently as Saryie began to speak.

"Hello Mr. Heizu. I hope you have had a good morning. I'm here to see Azumi if you don't mind," Saryie spoke, carefully with a sweet tone.

Isamu reversed his chair and moved back inside his house, leaving the door wide open.

"Come in if you must. Azumi is currently in the kitchen," Isamu spoke in a low voice, his tone not sounding very hospitable.

Saryie walked in as she watched Isamu retreat to his workshop where he tested and created poisons in the living room. Their living room was full of science beakers, tubes, tools, and chemicals. They had many tables that held separate projects and the room was brightly lit with lamps and candles. Weapons adorned some of the living room walls and a barely forgotten picture of a family portrait of when Azumi was younger. In that portrait was when Azumi's mom was still alive.

Saryie glanced at the picture briefly before making her way to the kitchen. Saryie had only been to Azumi's house a few times. Their house wasn't suitable for guests as they were rather reclusive to the outside world.

When Saryie entered into Azumi's kitchen, she saw Azumi washing dishes mechanically, her eyes not really focusing. Saryie called out to Azumi, bringing Azumi back to the present. Azumi looked over steadily at Saryie, her mind quickly theorizing why Saryie was there.

"You came for the scroll I showed you yesterday?" Azumi asked, calmly as she began to dry her hands.

"Yea, I would like to start training with it," Saryie stated, trying to read Azumi's features.

"Very well. I will accompany you to the training grounds so I can show you the hand signs," Azumi agreed, as she moved passed Saryie.

Saryie followed Azumi as she grabbed the scroll and her poncho before they headed out. Azumi called to her father that she was leaving but he did not respond as he kept working. Then the two leapt over to the training grounds.

Once they had arrived, Azumi tossed Saryie the scroll. Saryie unraveled it to see the seal that was displayed on it. Azumi then instructed Saryie on the hand signs she needed to make and warned her that the amount of chakra she used would equate to how much water that would be summoned from the river.

Saryie nodded as she placed the seal on the ground and performed the hand signs. She slammed her hand on the seal. The seal activated and a fountain of water gushed out of the seal. Saryie had to move her head out of the way quickly as to not get splashed in her face.

The steady fountain of water circulated in the air vertically from the scroll. Azumi nodded in approval at the success of the seal and told Saryie to now cast her water barrier jutsu she had been working on.

Saryie did just that; she performed the necessary hand signs and manipulated the water from the seal to form around her. Azumi eyed it warily as Saryie was impressed with herself.

Soon Azumi leapt back as she threw a senbon at Saryie's barrier. It deflected and Azumi's eyes narrowed more, calculatingly. Saryie realized Azumi was testing her barrier's strength to see if she did really master the jutsu.

Azumi then began to attack at all angles, sending senbon flying towards Saryie. Most of them repelled. Azumi paused briefly and told Saryie to try and counterattack with the barrier, which Saryie hadn't learned how to do yet.

Saryie tried to manipulate the water further by using her chakra as Azumi sent more senbon at her. Some of them were blocked but as Saryie tried to reshape the water, a senbon broke through and cut Saryie's shoulder. The sudden contact snapped Saryie's concentration and the whole water jutsu was expelled. The water receded back into the seal and transported back to the river as the scroll snapped closed.

"Damn," Saryie cursed, disappointed with herself as she looked at her shallow wound.

It was barely bleeding as Azumi approached her.

"It wasn't that bad of a test run. We know that the seal works and that the water barrier jutsu does repel physical attacks. Next time we'll have to test ninjutsu once you learn how to counterattack with that jutsu," Azumi stated, mellow, her eyes drifting to Saryie's shoulder wound.

"I'm guessing you didn't use the paralyzing needles on me? Otherwise, I doubt I be able to talk right now," Saryie questioned, quirking an eyebrow at Azumi.

"That's correct. No need to use such potions on a test run," Azumi stated, her eyes meeting Saryie's.

Saryie smirked. "So next time you're going to use the real thing?"

Azumi blinked as she sighed. "Only if necessary, we're teammates after all," Azumi spoke dryly as she moved to distance herself.

Saryie took Azumi's answer for what it was and practiced two more times with the jutsu. Azumi observed Saryie as she tried to make the water jutsu counterattack. Azumi would only strike Saryie's barrier when Saryie seemed to have a grip on how to counterattack with the jutsu. The senbon would sometimes be repelled or slice right through and Saryie would have to start all over again.

When Saryie had her water barrier up and running again, the two were interrupted. Azumi was the one to notice the chakra signature first as her eyes trained on the spot where the person was coming from. Saryie noticed Azumi's attention was diverted to something else and turned her head in time to see Sai entering the training grounds.

Sai's eyes met with Saryie's, who was protected by her water barrier. The water barrier snapped as Saryie smiled and waved as she became distracted. Azumi's eyes darted to Saryie and then back to Sai, her face composed.

"Hope I'm not interrupting anything," Sai mentioned, calmly, his dark eyes shifted to Azumi's, taking in her features.

"Oh I'm just training; it's no big deal," Saryie stated as she grabbed her scroll off the ground as she lightly jogged over to Sai.

"I had saw. It looked impressive," Sai spoke, his attention going back to Saryie as he smiled. His eyes went to the scroll that Saryie was holding. "The water… did it get summoned by that scroll?" Sai inquired, blankly.

"Yes, Azumi made it for me," Saryie stated, looking back to Azumi who was eyeing Sai suspiciously. "Oh, you two haven't formally met yet. Sai this is Azumi, my other teammate and genjutsu expert. Azumi this is-"

"Sai," Azumi stated, evenly, cutting off Saryie. "He's been the one Michi teases you about, am I correct?"

"Yea," Saryie stuttered out, unevenly, looking questionably at Azumi.

"You're part of Danzo's foundation aren't you?" Azumi questioned, steadily.

Sai's eyes narrowed. "Yes, I am."

"How did you know that?" Saryie gasped, stunned.

Azumi stared intensely at Sai as she answered Saryie. "Danzo's men all wear those half black jackets."

Azumi then broke eye contact as she turned away. "Keep working on that jutsu, Saryie. I'll check up on you in a few days," Azumi spoke as she departed.

Saryie watched Azumi leave, a little dumbfounded as she turned her attention back to Sai.

"Eh… I don't know what is up with her. She can be like that with most people. She's pretty standoffish," Saryie said, lightly, shrugging her shoulders.

Sai's eyes went back to Saryie's and smiled. "No need to worry yourself. I'm glad I got a chance to meet your other teammate," Sai spoke, softly.

"So what's up?" Saryie asked, upbeat.

Sai glanced around casually. "I'm pretty sure the sky is what is up," Sai mentioned.

Saryie giggled. "Not what I meant. I mean like…. What's going on… why are you here, type of thing?" Saryie asked, lightly.

"Oh…well I did uh… have something on my mind…. That I wanted to ask you," Sai spoke a bit unsure of himself as he scratched his cheek lightly.

"Oh?" Saryie stated, curious, looking up at Sai with wide-eyes.

"Yes… well… I guess… are we a couple?" Sai stated bluntly, looking directly into Saryie's eyes.

Saryie looked taken back as she pursed her lips and tried to read Sai's blank expression. "I'd like to think so…" Saryie voiced, composed.

"Then why aren't we a couple?" Sai asked.

"Well… do you know what the significance of it is?" Saryie asked, hesitant.

"That we have romantic attraction to each other," Sai stated, a little baffled at her question.

"Yes, but… it's more than that…. It means you're exclusively dating someone. So if we're a couple, you would be exclusively dating me and you couldn't go out on dates with someone else…" Saryie spoke clearly, a bit anxious.

Sai took her words in for a moment, considering it. "I would be perfectly ok with that. I don't prefer to date anyone else," Sai stated, bluntly. Sai's eyes watching Saryie's face keenly.

Saryie smiled as she linked hands with Sai, before looking back up at him. "Ok… then we are a couple," Saryie stated, feeling her stomach fill with butterflies.

"Should we kiss now or later then?" Sai asked, bluntly.

"What?" Saryie questioned, surprised, taking a step back.

"Couple's kiss to express affection, correct?" Sai stated, awkwardly as he tried to assess Saryie's reaction.

Saryie took a moment before responding. "Yes, but where is this coming from?... From a book?" Saryie asked, skeptical.

"Yes, it was mentioned in many books that I read," Sai answered, honestly. "But also Kiba and Naruto informed me that to be considered dating, one has to kiss the other."

"Oh gosh," Saryie mumbled, as she rolled her eyes, looking down at the ground.

"Is there a reason you don't want to kiss me?" Sai questioned, calmly.

"What? No… I want to kiss you… it's just… uh… I don't want it be influenced by others… just… umm… I want this to be genuine," Saryie stated, rambling a bit as she got her thoughts together. She stepped away from Sai letting go of his hand as she pursed her lips, looking at his questioning face.

"Close your eyes," Saryie stated.

"What?"

"Just do it."

Sai closed his eyes, willingly, not knowing how this was going to help.

"Now I just want you to focus on how you're feeling ok? Not what you think you feel… or how you're supposed to feel… Just be honest, ok?" Saryie asked.

"Ok," Sai replied, still with his eyes closed.

Sai heard Saryie step forward towards him and then received a flick of a finger to his forehead. His eyes snapped open quickly in surprise as he looked at Saryie's determined face.

"What was that for?" Sai asked, blankly, touching his forehead.

"What did you feel?" Saryie inquired.

"Slight pain… but mostly surprise and confusion," Sai answered honestly.

"Good, now close your eyes again," Saryie stated.

"Are you going to flick me on the forehead again?" Sai asked, hesitant, placing his hand back to his side.

Saryie smiled, her face relaxing. "Maybe."

Sai obeyed and closed his eyes again, not knowing what to expect.

The soft touch of Saryie's lips on his, definitely wasn't what he was expecting. He was stunned for a moment as he tried to do as Saryie said and focused on how he felt. Her lips moved barely over his in a soft caress and he found himself responding to the contact.

The kiss they shared lasted briefly as Saryie broke away from him. She looked up at him and he looked down at her, analyzing the details of her nervous face.

"So… how do you feel?" Saryie questioned, biting her lip.

"Your lips are soft," Sai stated bluntly to which Saryie was about to sigh, but Sai refocused her attention as he grabbed her hand. "It felt nice as well."

Sai stepped closer to her and Saryie could feel her heart racing as Sai brought up his other hand to her face. He slowly leaned down and kissed her gently on the lips, enjoying the new sensations that he was feeling.

* * *

 **Sorry to leave it there…. BUT IT IS A MUST. Mwuahhahaha. But they kiss so yay… Like seriously I had their first kissed scene in my head for months… like way before I wrote the whole thing. Sometimes I write in pieces so you know a little bit of a scene here and there that I know I want to happen but have to get the story to get there first. So. I'mma leave the chapter off there. Was going to leave it on a different note but I don't want to ruin their moment :D Also you got a bit of insight to Azumi's home life. I won't give out much details cause I'm thinking of creating her own story just for her but we'll see.**

 **Please review**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. I own Saryie, Michi, and Azumi.**


	34. Chapter 34

**A couple of reminders, since I know it can get confusing and forgetful when reading an oc story…**

 **Miyu is Michi's 12-year-old sister, his oldest one.**

 **Airi is Michi's 8-year-old sister**

 **And Aoi is Michi's 4-year-old sister.**

 **Also I posted a new group pic of my Team H on my deviantart page, if you wanna check that out. Alright that is all. Just some clarity if anyone has forgotten.**

* * *

 **Stirring Emotions**

Chapter 34

It was the next day when Sai and Saryie were having lunch that Sakura came to retrieve Sai. The Hokage had requested the two to meet at her office. Sakura didn't divulge any more details than that as the two headed to the Hokage tower, cutting Saryie's and Sai's lunch short.

Sai told her that he would see her later when he can. Saryie agreed and waved them off as they left. She pursed her lips in thought, wondering if the Hokage was sending Team Kakashi out on a mission again.

Saryie finished her food, not sure what she should do for the rest of the day. That morning she had already tried practicing her new jutsu but it still wasn't complete yet. Saryie began to walk out of the restaurant and took a slow look around the village.

She felt like sparring…. But she didn't really have anyone to spar with. Lee and the rest of Team Gai had been sent on a mission right after the night out at the Karaoke restaurant so he wasn't available. She could just go bug Michi, but he wouldn't be very willing and it would be a good hour hassle before he would put up a fight. Azumi was out of the question… she would be more attentive in how Saryie's new jutsu was coming along. Plus, Azumi wasn't much for hand to hand combat for good lengths of a time.

Saryie sighed as she continued her pace down the street, trying to think of anyone she knew that was available. A loud commotion soon caught her attention as she rounded the corner.

"I dare you. Say that again!"

Saryie looked to see Miyu standing in front of 3 older boys that were smirking at her, tauntingly.

"Or what? What's your fancy jutsu going to do? Blueberry head," one boy remarked, in a mocking tone.

Miyu lunged at him but the boy was quick on his feet and dodged Miyu's attack. The boy's other friend was not so lucky as he took a punch to the nose.

With one kid on the ground holding his bloody nose, Miyu turned around to find where the boy who taunted her was. Miyu looked left and right only seeing the boy's other friend until the boy whistled from above Miyu's head.

He stood with his feet planted firmly on the side of the building using his chakra, looking down at her.

"I'm up here, Blueberry," the boy mocked, sticking out his tongue.

"How about you come down here so I can kick your butt," Miyu called, angry, clenching her fists.

"Nah, I rather not waste my time. Come on guys let's go," the boy called as he began to run along on the side the wall.

The other two kids began to follow after the older boy. The one who got knocked off the ground, wiped the blood from under his nose with his sleeve while getting up.

"Hey come back here!" Miyu shouted in protest.

The boy Miyu had punched earlier brushed passed Miyu roughly, hitting her shoulder.

"You better watch yourself," the boy spoke lowly.

Miyu grabbed him by his shirt, angry. "What was that?"

Saryie stepped in then, knowing Miyu was going to cause more trouble.

"Hey, enough," Saryie spoke, calmly, holding up her hands.

Miyu glanced at Saryie, letting the boy go as the boy ran off in the direction of his friends. Miyu huffed and dusted off her shorts as she looked away from Saryie.

"What are you doing here?" Miyu questioned, with an attitude.

"I just happened to be walking by," Saryie mentioned, casually, analyzing Miyu.

"Well next time don't butt in," Miyu stated as she began to walk away, still mad.

Saryie followed after her and came up alongside her.

"Who were those boys?"

"Didn't I say don't butt in?" Miyu scoffed, annoyed as she looked away from Saryie, picking up her pace.

"Were they picking on you?" Saryie asked, curious, finding it rather easy to keep up with Miyu.

"NO! Just butt out of it," Miyu said defensively.

"Then why were they messing with you?" Saryie persisted.

"Because they're genin now!" Miyu answered loudly, her annoyance showing on her face. "They were classmates of mine that got to graduate early because they passed their exams and now they think they're all better than me," Miyu stated grumpy.

"So you were trying to show them that you could still beat them up?" Saryie inquired, evenly, raising an eyebrow.

"You sound like my mother now. I don't start fights. I finish them. He said he could beat me yet he won't come and face me in a fair fight," Miyu said, her eyes narrowed as she marched down the street.

Saryie smirked and laugh inwardly…. She had been there… Well sometimes it still felt like she was there. That she had to prove she is stronger than anyone else thought she was.

"I get it Miyu… I really do," Saryie spoke, empathetically with a smile.

Miyu glanced up at Saryie, analyzing her face. "Oh yea? So you won't tell my mother or my brother about this then?" Miyu questioned, her tone less hostile.

"Not if I don't need to," Saryie answered, cheery.

"Hn."

Miyu kept her pace steady and still looked rather pissed off as she turned her attention away from Saryie.

"Would you like to spar?" Saryie asked, friendly.

Miyu stopped short, giving Saryie a questioning glance.

"Are you serious?"

"Yup."

"Ok, then," Miyu agreed as Saryie said great.

Miyu followed Saryie to the training fields. Saryie told Miyu to come at her with everything she's got and Miyu did just that. Saryie was able to block all of Miyu's attacks. Miyu wasn't bad at taijutsu but she wasn't fast. Saryie stayed at normal speed with Miyu as she lightly counterattacked.

Miyu soon broke out a jutsu that Saryie had never seen before. It looked like an adaptation to reptilian armor jutsu, however it covered only Miyu's hands to her elbows but the reptilian skin had spikes. Saryie had never seen Michi use that type of jutsu before and had to be careful as Miyu charged at her with more energy than before.

Saryie being curious in the midst of battle, performed a substitution jutsu without Miyu knowing and let Miyu think she was able to strike her. Saryie saw a smile illuminate Miyu's face until "Saryie" poofed into a log that was splintered.

Saryie stepped out of the trees then as Miyu's jutsu faded.

"Not bad," Saryie stated with a smile. "You're definitely not like your brother. He wouldn't spar with me for this long."

Miyu smirked as she raised her head high. "Its cause he's a lazy shinobi. I'm surprised he passed the academy," Miyu remarked, a bit bitterly.

"I'm more surprised that you haven't passed yet," Saryie commented, her eyes serious as she looked at Miyu.

Miyu crossed her arms and huffed. "It's cause of stupid Iruka-sensei. He doesn't think I'm ready."

"And do you know why you're not?" Saryie asked, her tone serious.

"Some stupid stuff about cooperation and collaborating nonsense," Miyu expressed, with her head turned away stubbornly.

Saryie took a moment to analyze the young girl's features. "Why do you want to be a shinobi, Miyu?"

"What do you mean why?" Miyu asked incredulously. "Being a shinobi is awesome. I would get to see the world and kick people's butts along the way."

"Being a shinobi is much more than kicking people's butts," Saryie stated, her tone low. "Your brother may be a bit lazy, but he puts his life on the line not to kick someone's butt, but to protect the people he cares about. He understands teamwork and collaboration. Even if he complains daily about everything he has to do, he will be there and give his all to protect this Village. Iruka doesn't think you're ready because you're always looking for your next victory with others and not how to work alongside others. It's great to be motivated and want to grow to be stronger… just… make sure you're doing it for the right reasons" Saryie spoke, carefully.

"Tch, and here I thought you were cool for once," Miyu remarked, offhandedly as she turned to leave.

"Where you going?" Saryie asked, concerned.

"I'm heading home," Miyu called, annoyed as she left.

Saryie sighed as she pursed her lips. She decided to give Miyu space, hopefully she would think through what Saryie said. Saryie didn't want to be rude to her; she could understand Miyu wanting to be the best but… it's also important to rely on others and to make friends.

Saryie let her mind wander as she did a few training exercises to strength her endurance and muscles for the remainder of the day. When the sun was about to set, Saryie decided it was time to head home.

Once she was home, she briefly took a shower and put on a pair of lounge-around clothes. She was drying her hair and wondering what the Hokage had wanted with Sai when she heard a knock on her door.

After placing her damp towel down on the counter in her bathroom, Saryie headed to her front door. Her hair was still damp and it began soaking the back of her shirt as she opened the door.

"Hello Saryie," Sai greeted with a small smile. "Is this a bad time?" Sai questioned, noticing her pajama shorts and grey shirt.

"No, not at all. Come in," Saryie mentioned as she stepped aside.

Sai came in without hesitancy, taking a look around her apartment that was slightly disorderly.

"So what did the Hokage want?" Saryie asked, bluntly.

"There was two things that the Hokage called me in for," Sai mentioned as his dark eyes bore into hers.

"Two?" Saryie questioned, raising her eyebrow.

"Yes, the first is relatively… somber news, I must warn you," Sai spoke hesitantly, gazing over her features.

Saryie's eyebrows knitted together in confusion.

"The Legendary Sanin, Jiraiya, is dead," Sai stated, bluntly.

Saryie gasped, surprised. "What? How?"

"He was sent on a mission to infiltrate the Hidden Rain Village since there was intel that the Akatsuki's leader, Pein, resided there. Jiraiya was caught and went head to head with the leader and didn't survive," Sai explained.

"The Akatsuki again…." Saryie muttered, a bit angry at the injustice. Sure, she didn't know Jiraiya personally, but he was still one of the Leaf's top shinobi, right next to the current Hokage. He must have not been easy to beat… so how could the Akatsuki defeat him? It angered Saryie. First Asuma was taken by the Akatsuki and now Jiraiya? It wasn't right.

Saryie began to clench her fists, her eyes focusing on the floorboards in deep thought.

"The other news is I've been assigned a new mission. I'll have to leave tomorrow," Sai stated.

Saryie's eyes snapped up to his as her fists unclenched, forgetting her momentary anger.

"Oh? Are you leaving with Team Kakashi then?" Saryie asked, her tone gentler.

"No. I'm being paired up with Yamato and Anko," Sai replied.

Saryie looked intrigued. "What's the mission about?"

"It's classified. I can't say much," Sai answered, evenly to which Saryie pouted.

"Well I hope it goes smoothly for you. Do you know when you will get back?" Saryie asked, probing for more information.

"No I'm not certain. It could take a couple of weeks. It all depends," Sai responded, taking in her pouting face. He took a step closer to her then, his hand carefully lifting to cup her face.

"I'm sorry that I can't say much on the matter," Sai spoke, softly, looking into her eyes.

Saryie sighed as she grabbed onto his hand that cupped her cheek. She interlocked their fingers as she brought his hand down from her face.

"It's okay. I understand. Its cause your Anbu," Saryie mentioned, as she smiled lightly up at him.

They stood there in a moment of silence, taking in each other's expression before Saryie's eyebrows knotted together once again.

"How come the Hokage called you in to tell you about Jiraiya?" Saryie asked, curious.

"Because I believe it pertain to me being Naruto's teammate. Naruto was Jiraiya's student," Sai spoke, clearly.

"Ooh," Saryie said, letting this new information sink in. "Oh my gosh, how's Naruto doing?" Saryie rushed, her eyes wide.

Sai looked a bit surprised by her immediate reaction and looked off to the side as he answered her. "Well… he seemed quite depressed… He was very much unlike himself."

"Poor Naruto. I feel bad for him," Saryie spoke, sorrowfully as she let go of Sai's hand and began messing with her hair.

Sai watched her for a few moments, unsure of what to say. "I'm sure Naruto will be alright."

"Yea, I know… he's a bit relentless. He'll bounce back, I imagine…" Saryie spoke, softly before her eyes narrowed. "What are the Akatsuki after anyway?" Saryie asked, angrily, not really expecting an answer.

"They're after Naruto," Sai mentioned.

"What?" Saryie asked, stunned, turning her head back to Sai. "Why?"

"They are tracking the tail beasts and they're after the nine tails in Naruto," Sai replied, casually.

Saryie's eyes widened with the new knowledge, before her face became serious and she pursed her lips. It was no real secret that Naruto was different. He was shunned and outcast by most of the village. She even remembered her mom scoffing at him back in the academy and told her not to talk to him. But now… after Naruto worked so hard so that people could respect him and accept him… members of the Akatsuki were doing all of this damage to innocent people just to get their hands on the tail beasts. It made Saryie angry. How dare they. Saryie didn't care how strong they were, they had no right.

"They're not going to get Naruto," Saryie declared, determined.

"No, they are not," Sai agreed, seeing the fire in her eyes.

* * *

 **Ok going to stop it there :D um yea this is amidst the beginning of season 8 when Naruto finds out Jiraiya dies, so some spoil alert if you haven't gotten to that part oops. I bet you can't guess what's next can you? :o lul**

 **Stay tuned and please review!**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto and I do not own Naruto's story plot with Pein. I do own Saryie, Michi, Azumi, and Miyu.**


	35. Chapter 35

**Alright get ready for season 8. Also it's a very Happy Birthday for me, so please review :( school will be starting soon.**

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 **Stirring Emotions**

Chapter 35

Saryie was working up a sweat as she was practicing her water barrier jutsu in the morning at the training grounds. Sai had left on his mission 2 days ago and Saryie was really trying to prove herself by somehow figuring out this jutsu. Saryie had just taken a break to catch her breath and grabbed a drink of water when the sound of explosions caught her attention.

Saryie went on the defensive as she curiously jumped up into a tree and took witness to the chaos that astounded her. Smoke was filling the air in different parts of the Village and a few buildings were in shambles. Another sound and strike of missiles hit causing the Earth to shake as Saryie began rushing back to the village, her heart was racing.

Saryie didn't know what was going on or who was doing this but she knew that this was an attack on the Hidden Leaf. As she rushed to find out what was going on, the sound of people screaming and buildings crashing were deafening to her ears.

Crowds of civilians were running every which way, causing a panic. Amongst the chaos Saryie heard a distinct woman's voice calling the name of their child. Saryie spotted the woman, seeing the woman struggled to keep her footing as people rushed by her. Saryie began looking around her surroundings, to see if she could see the child by chance.

Saryie rushed passed people as she climbed up the side of the building using her chakra to get a better view of the situation. Saryie spotted from up high a scared four-year-old child alone. Saryie's attention soon snapped to a new sound as she looked over to see a giant summoning that looked like a centipede barging its way through the buildings.

Saryie had no time to lose as she rushed to the small child. She officially was able to grab the small boy as the building that stood over him came crashing down from the centipede's path. Luckily other civilians were all out of the way as they paused to look at the centipede with stunned fear.

"Move! Get to the underground evacuation tunnels. Let's go," Saryie shouted at the frozen civilians as she carried the boy over to the mom that was looking for him.

The civilians seemed to snap out of it as they all began rushing away once again. Saryie delivered the boy to his mom who thanked her as she too rushed to one of the entrances to the tunnels. Saryie looked back to see the centipede continuing on its rampage as she helped escort the civilians to safety.

Once the civilians were all able to enter the tunnels, Saryie left them to find others in need or to find the ones responsible for all this mayhem. She was angry at whoever was doing this but she couldn't turn her back on those who were defenseless.

Saryie made her rounds through the streets, directing civilians to safety and helping those who were injured. As the attack raged on, the streets soon got more deserted as Saryie ventured out.

Saryie soon found a man whose legs was crushed by fallen debris. She called for other people to help as she tried to lift the fallen wreckage off the man. Soon three other Leaf shinobi came as they helped her lift the wreckage and they were able to safely pull the man out.

"Quick, someone must take him to the hospital," the jonin level ninja spoke.

"I can do it. Go on ahead," Saryie stated as she lifted the man's arm over one shoulder.

One of the Leaf ninjas took the man's other arm and did the same. "Let's go."

Saryie nodded and raced the man to the hospital with the other leaf shinobi helping as the man groaned wearily.

Once at the hospital, Saryie told the shinobi she could take it from here and took the man into the hospital as the shinobi departed and left.

The hospital was bustling and there were many patients lying on mats. The stench of blood and cries of pain filled the air. Saryie soon saw Sakura among all the injured and medics.

"Sakura! This man's legs are crushed, where do I put him?" Saryie called.

Sakura eyes caught hers as she headed over to Saryie. Sakura quickly took a look at the man's crushed legs.

"Go put him over there, I'll send someone to attend to him right away," Sakura stated, pointing to one of the empty mats.

Saryie nodded as she went to place the man down. The man was cursing and moaning. Saryie watched the man wither in pain, not knowing how to help. When a nurse came by to start healing him, Saryie left his side.

She needed to go back out there. She needed to see if there was anyone else that she needed to help. Saryie left the hospital and began running back through the streets of the Konoha.

As Saryie zoomed by the vacant streets, she spied a familiar figure running along the roof tops.

"Michi!" Saryie called as she quickened her pace.

Michi slowed to a stop. "Have you seen Miyu and Airi?!" Michi shouted, anxious.

"No, you haven't seen them?" Saryie asked as she jumped up to the roof of the building to join Michi, facing him.

"No. They were out on an errand this morning for mom when this whole thing started," Michi explained.

"I'll help you find them," Saryie stated, determinedly as Michi nodded.

They began roaming through the streets together from on top of the roof tops. They soon came to a stop as Michi began forming hand signs. Saryie watched as Michi slammed his hand on the tiled roof.

"Summing jutsu."

Markings showed up on the rooftop as hundreds of lizards began to scatter in every direction.

"Hopefully that will let me find them faster," Michi stated, his face serious.

Saryie and Michi began moving again and it wasn't long after that Michi felt the lizards had found his sisters. Michi changed directions and Saryie followed him to his sisters.

They spotted them kneeling in an alley way on an abandon street that had suffered damage. Miyu hovered over her sister, keeping a watchful eye as Airi was holding her leg and had a pained look on her face.

"There you two are. What happened?" Michi questioned, concerned as he moved in to take an assessment of Airi as Saryie kept guard. The lizard that had informed Michi's of his sisters' whereabouts crawled up onto his shoulder.

"Airi sprained her ankle when we were dodging falling debris," Miyu expressed, evenly.

"It really hurts," Airi spoke, quietly, her eyes on the brink of tears.

"Yea, I know. It'll be ok," Michi spoke soothingly as he petted Airi's hair. "Come on we got to get you two moving to somewhere safe," Michi declared as he moved to pick up Airi.

Once Airi was in his arms, the group heard another explosion go off nearby. Michi quickly performed hand signs and let his reptilian armor cover them as the ground shook. When nothing had fallen on top of them, they decided to make a break for it.

"Let's go," Saryie spoke as Michi took off running with Miyu beside him and Airi in his arms.

Saryie took up the rear as the four of them raced out into the open of the torn up street towards the evacuation location.

The group was soon stopped by the presence of the Naraka Path of Pein that had orange hair and metal studs in an upside down v on his nose and cheeks. Michi and Miyu took a step back at the foreign intruder that wore a black coat with red clouds on it. Saryie soon realized it was the Akatsuki and she moved her hand slowly to her kunai holster.

"Where is Naruto Uzumaki?" the Naraka Path asked, in a deep voice, his all-seeing eyes looking over them.

Saryie knew she needed to be cautious, but… she had Michi's sisters to think about and she knew Michi would be thinking the same thing.

"If it's Naruto you want…" Saryie drawled, gaining the Path's attention, knowing Michi was watching carefully.

"You can go to hell," Saryie stated as she threw her kunai quickly at the Naraka Path and disappeared.

The Pein easily caught her kunai in his fingers that was aimed at his eye and looked unimpressed until he saw she was gone. She soon came around beside him at her full speed and kicked the Path away.

Michi took that time to hand Airi to Miyu and activated his reptilian armor jutsu once again.

"Take Airi and get her out of here," Michi voiced as he stood protectively in front of them, facing where Saryie had kicked the Naraka Path.

"I can help!" Miyu protested with Airi's arm draped around Miyu's shoulder.

"Look at your sister Miyu! Airi needs your help more," Saryie stated as she watched the Naraka Path get up.

Miyu looked at her sister's face to see that Airi was scared. Making a wise decision, Miyu nodded as her face slowly became determined.

"Miyu, Airi, use the reptilian armor jutsu and get out of here as fast as you can," Michi stated, serious as he let the lizard from his shoulder travel onto Miyu's.

Miyu nodded as she performed hand signs and activated the reptilian armor jutsu. Miyu began to make a break for it with Airi limping along with her sister's help.

"I'm only going to ask again, where is Naruto Uzumaki?" the Naraka Path's voice droned as he neared menacingly. Not in the least bit interested in Miyu and Airi's escape.

"Who wants to know?" Saryie asked, unamused.

"Pein."

"That's funny, you're going to feel pain in a minute," Saryie stated. "Michi, attack pattern B."

Michi began performing hand signs.

"Earth Style. Shifting Landscape."

Michi performed more hand signs on top of that as the Earth became uneven like a moving tide.

"Earth Style. Dust Barrage."

Soon the layers of the ground that were shifting under Saryie's and the Naraka Path's feet were surrounded in a dust storm that rose up from the ground which limited visual perception. Saryie smirked as the Naraka Path could no longer see her.

"Water Style. Twin Water Blades," came Saryie's voice as she moved in the direction of Pein.

She began to attack him and he seemed to be able to dodge her swings of her blades. She was cautious in her attacks, the training she had with Sai coming in handy as she used her speed to her advantage. She was able to land a couple of kicks to him and was able to cut part of his arm's sleeve.

The dust began to thin out and clear; Saryie jumped back as the dust barrage ended. The Naraka Path's eyes left Saryie's as his vision swept the surrounding area, immediately realizing Saryie's other teammate was missing.

Before the Naraka Path had a chance to move, Michi popped out from under ground beside Saryie as the ground underneath the Path's feet exploded. Smoke rose up as the Path was caught in the explosion from underground.

"How are your sisters?" Saryie asked, quietly as they watched the bombs go off.

Michi took a moment, concentrating with his eyes closed. "They're fine. They're safe now," Michi spoke calmly as he opened his eyes.

The smoke began to clear and were surprised to see nothing there.

"What? He escaped?" Saryie called, confused, her eyes narrowing.

"Mere child's play," the Naraka Path's voice droned from behind them.

Michi and Saryie quickly turned around to face him but he was quick to catch them by their throats. Saryie dropped her chakra weapons from the sudden contact and struggled at the hand on her throat. Michi seemed to groan as he too was having a hard time maintaining his chakra for his reptilian armor. Their eyes soon widened as they saw a big headed statue. Its mouth was open and purple flames lit the ground under it.

"Now the King of Hell will judge what you know," the Naraka Path smoothly spoke.

Saryie struggled harder as she felt her tongue being summoned by the King of Hell Statue. Saryie could hear the cracking of Michi's armor as she concentrated on her chakra and separated from her body, leaving a water clone in her place.

"To hell with you!" Saryie shouted as kicked at the hand that held Michi.

The Path dropped Michi as Saryie grabbed her water sticks once more and went after him. She noticed the statue had disappeared from her vision as she leapt after the Path. The Naraka Path dodged and brought out a black rod from under his coat and went to battle with her.

Soon Michi followed her into battle once his reptilian armor was intact again. Saryie was able to cut through the rod with her water blade but the Path kept growing it back.

The Path was able to kick Michi away and as Saryie went to strike the Naraka Path, a black metal rod cut through her shoulder. Saryie faltered in her step and the Naraka Path was able to kick her away too. Saryie hit a crumbled wall, hurting her head. Saryie slowly tried to move. Her head was dizzy and the pain in her shoulder was excruciating.

"Saryie!"

Saryie heard Michi calling her as she struggled to get up. Blood ran down her head and dripped from her mouth. She lazily looked up to see the Naraka Path was blocking Michi from her as he fought vigorously against him.

Saryie tried to stand, her feet failing her as she tried to take a step forward. She was on her knees, drained. It felt as if the whole Earth slowed down as she felt disoriented. She looked down and saw her water stick a few inches from her.

She reached slowly for it. She had to get up. She had to get up and help Michi. Saryie grabbed her water stick and was beginning to infuse chakra into it as she looked back up.

"Saryie! WATCH OUT!" Michi shouted, leaving himself open as the Naraka Path attacked him.

Saryie was about to move to help Michi when suddenly she felt a hand on her head. She was frozen as she felt foreign chakra invade her system. She couldn't move, couldn't blink, she could barely breath.

She had been caught and felt the familiar waves of invasion as someone combed through her mind. She was helpless. She saw Michi caught in the grip of the Naraka Path once again.

"She knows nothing," a different Path's voice commented, the one holding her.

Soon she left levitated as she felt as if her spirit were being ripped away from her body and everything went dark.

* * *

 **Ooooo sooo how you like that? So yup Saryie was a causality in the Pein attack. What will happen next?**

 **BTW the two paths that Saryie and Michi battled is the one Konohamaru battled and the one to steal Saryie's soul away was the same one that stole Shizune's away.**

 **Please review!**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. I own Saryie, Michi, Azumi, Airi, and Miyu.**


	36. Chapter 36

**Here's to a new semester and a lot of stress! Alright so a lot of this chapter is going to be similar to season 10, episode 197, in Naruto Shippuden, but its more in perspective to Sai and I made minor changes. Enjoy.  
**

* * *

 **Stirring Emotions**

Chapter 36

"I'm certain. It's one Orochimaru's old hideouts," Sai stated, evenly, focusing on his super beast scroll jutsu. The rats from his scroll communicating with him as they investigated an old hideout.

"That's just like Kabuto. To take advantage of an old asset," Anko responded, her face solemn.

It had been a good four days since Yamato had left urgently, leaving Sai and Anko alone for this mission. Sai had caught Yamato saying Naruto had entered into tail beast mode as he rushed back to Konoha, abandoning their mission. Sai had wondered what had happened.

He was uncertain why Naruto would suddenly go into tail beast mode. Sai felt slightly uneasy about it. Naruto would go into tail beast mode only when he was being pushed to his limit or when he was overwhelmed with emotion. Naruto's emotions could have gotten out of hand and wreak havoc. There wasn't much Sai could do and he tried to push his uneasy thoughts away. He had this mission that he was to put his full effort into.

Sai was about to respond to Anko when he felt chakra presences drawing up behind him fast. Sai swerved and began to reach for his blade when he recognized the fellow Leaf Shinobi as Tokuma Hyuga, Muta Aburame, and Ranka. Anko had turned expectantly, addressing the new intruders.

"Captain Mitarashi, I have come with an order from the Village. Sai will return home and you will continue the mission to track Kabuto. We are here to assist you with that," Tokuma Hyuga spoke directly to Anko.

"You can give me information too," Anko began as she started to stand, eyeballing the three Leaf shinobi. "Yamato rushed back in the middle of the mission, so what happened?" Anko inquired.

"The Akatsuki mounted an attack on the Hidden Leaf Village. It has been destroyed and many were injured and Lady Tsunade is in a coma," Tokuma briefly explained.

"What?" Anko said incredulously.

"And now Lord Danzo has taken over as Hokage," Tokuma announced, looking over at Sai directly as Sai stood up.

"How did such a thing happen?" Anko questioned, softly.

"I can give you details later, captain. Right now Danzo wishes to see you, Sai," Tokuma spoke, carefully.

"Right," Sai nodded as he jumped into the trees and head to Konoha.

Sai could feel his mind rationalizing that the state of Konoha couldn't be that bad, but his body felt differently. There was a nervous feeling in his gut as he rushed home and he tried to put it aside.

Tokumo had said the Akatsuki were behind this…. Sai half expected this to happen at some point; after all the Akatsuki were after the jinchuuriki. They were bound to come after Naruto, which made sense why Naruto might have gone into tail beast mode and Yamato had ran off.

Sai tried to keep the pestering questions in his mind at bay, but one nagging question that kept popping up was whether his friends were ok. He felt a tight grip in his belly when he thought of Saryie during the Akatsuki's attack…. Could she have possibly engaged in the fight and got hurt? Or did she know better than to interfere with the Akatsuki. Sai had a sinking feeling the earlier notion was more likely and he pushed his feet faster.

He also didn't know if Naruto was still alive and well… or was he captured? Naruto was his teammate after all… and Sai felt they had built a bond… hadn't they?

The longer it took to Konoha, the more questions developed and pestered Sai. Even when he got to Konoha, he would have to see Danzo first and get answers to his questions later.

When Sai arrived at the top of the wall of Konoha, he was a bit taken back. He looked down at the two craters in the ground where Konoha use to be. All the old buildings and houses were rubble at the sides of Konoha's wall. Sai saw how in the craters that construction for new buildings and houses were already being constructed. There was a heavy supply of lumber and wood as carpenters went to work to build the new houses. Sai let his eyes scan the rest of Konoha noting the many pitched tents that were set up for shelter at the moment. Hokage Rock was still standing and all the faces were still intact and the buildings from up above were still standing.

A feeling in his chest suddenly tightened as he thought of Saryie and a feeling he wasn't quite sure what to name filled his being. He tightened his fists as his outward façade remain composed as he went to find Danzo.

Sai was immediately spotted by Danzo's men after entering the Village and they quickly escorted him to Danzo's tent. On the way, Sai briefly asked what happened to the Village. The Anbu gave vague details but told Sai how Pein attacked and that Naruto had saved the Village. When they entered Danzo's tent, it was dimly lit and filled with a few piles of books. Sai automatically bowed before Lord Danzo as Danzo's two Anbu departed, leaving the two alone.

"You wanted to see me, Lord Danzo?" Sai addressed, with a casual tone.

"Observe Naruto. If you see anything out of the ordinary, report it to me immediately," Danzo ordered, in his rough voice.

"Yes, sir," Sai responded, obediently, keeping his eyes to the floor.

"This village had suffered quite a lot of damage because of Pein's attack. We're lucky that they were not successful in capturing our jinchuuriki. However, Lady Tsunade is no longer able to fulfill the role of Hokage and to our favor, I have been accepted as the Acting Hokage. For many years I have tried to protect this Village from the shadows and now I will be stepping into the light. It is important to realize how vulnerable Konoha is at this very moment, and that the foundation will be crucial to protecting it," Danzo expressed, evenly, his eyes trained on Sai.

Sai nodded. "The foundation lives to serve Konoha for its best interest," Sai responded, almost robotically.

"Good. I trust your placement on Team 7 will not make it hard for you to keep a close eye on Naruto," Danzo reported, stiffly.

Sai kept quiet for a moment before he began to speak. "Um… may I ask you a question, sir?"

"What is it?" Danzo asked, skeptical, his eyes sharply watching Sai.

"Naruto…What do you plan to do with him?"

"Don't worry. Naruto is the Village's hero right now. All the Villagers trust and love him, more than they do me, the Sixth Hokage. If I were to do something to Naruto now, it will affect my new position. This is a crucial time, right before the Jonins' vote of confidence. Still Naruto is a jinchuuriki, and as such it is the Hokage's job to watch over him. I will not be as lenient as Tsunade was," Danzo stated, firmly

"I understand, sir," Sai responded, obediently, even though his eyes narrowed slightly in discontent.

"Do you…?" Danzo drawled, taking note of Sai's tensing posture. "Ever since your placement on Team 7, I've have been told that you have been frequently visiting a relative of Kakashi Hatake, Saryie, if I am not mistaken," Danzo stated, evenly.

"Yes, that is correct sir," Sai answered, his tone and voice composed. "I have been using Saryie as part of my cover."

"Go on," Danzo expressed, intrigued.

"I have had a difficult time trying to gain Naruto and Sakura's trust since the Tenchi Bridge Reconnaissance Mission. I had to show them in a way that I was trying to change. They have believed my attempts are sincere but they were still wary of me. By pretending to have relations with Saryie, it helped decrease their skepticism of me and now accept me as part of the team more easily," Sai explained, monotone.

"Impressive façade," Danzo mentioned as his eyes narrowed. "So I can be assured your loyalty hasn't wavered," Danzo stated, expectantly.

"Never, Lord Danzo," Sai replied.

Danzo smirked as he let his shoulders relax. "That's good to hear…. It's a shame though what happened to Saryie during the attack," Danzo spoke, his words slipping through his mouth casually, but his eyes were intensely analyzing Sai's next move.

"It is much unfortunate. I have heard many were injured during the assault," Sai replied blandly, not expressing any emotion.

"Yes, and many had died…" Danzo drawled and a moment of silence hung between them.

"Will that be all Lord Danzo?" Sai questioned, after the silent went on too long.

"Yes, you're dismissed," Danzo stated as Sai stood up.

Sai looked Danzo in the eye before bowing his head in respect before leaving Danzo's presence and his tent. Sai walked casually away but as soon as he was a good distance apart and when he was certain he wasn't followed, he felt the nervousness in his belly return.

He still barely had the whole story. He just knew Naruto had saved the village but what about everyone else? Sai's thoughts turned to Saryie. Danzo was trying to test his loyalty to the foundation when he taunted information about Saryie during the attack. He had said something bad had happened to her and Sai wasn't sure if that was a bluff. The only way to find out was to ask anyone who might know without looking too suspicious.

As Sai was walking through the row of tents that had been aligned on either side, he heard someone talking about Naruto and all the amazing stuff he did. Naruto apparently took on all the 6 Paths of Pein at once and was able to destroy 5 of them before his tail-beast emerged. Then he kicked the last Pein's butt and was able to talk sense to the one that caused all of Konoha's destruction. Naruto was able to convince the enemy that what he was doing was wrong. And that by some miracle all of the villagers that had died during Pein's attack had suddenly come back to life. That it was all thanks to Naruto.

After Sai heard pieces of the story that the villagers told about Naruto, Sai's stomach began to unclench. It was good news to hear that people who had died were restored to life even if the villagers' knowledge was unclear as to why.

Sai continued on as he briefly gazed into open tents and looked for a familiar face. He soon did hear a whine from a voice he recognized and immediately his eyes followed the sound. He spotted the blue haired, Michi, of which that familiar sound had originated from.

Michi was currently discussing things it looked like with an older man that looked much like Michi. The older man had blue facial hair on his side of his cheeks and had a blue standard shinobi cap on that displayed his forehead protector. His ears were stretched with green studs that were a signature mark on the Haruki clan. He wore a jonin standard vest and shorts, with elbow protectors with the Haruki family symbol on them.

Michi's back was too Sai as he approached, Sai held up his hand in greeting as he interrupted the two.

"Michi," Sai called for the boy's attention.

Michi and his father stopped talking as Michi's attention went to Sai. His eyes widened a bit. "You're back?" Michi questioned, getting to the point.

"Yes," Sai stated.

"Have you seen Saryie yet?" Michi questioned, fully focused on Sai.

"No. Which is why I was glad to run into you. I suppose you might know where I can find her?" Sai questioned, casually, a fake smile gracing his features.

"Oh yea sure… She kind of in the infirmary at the moment," Michi stated, serious.

"Could you please take me to her?" Sai asked, bluntly, his smile falling from his face.

Michi looked to his dad to which his dad nodded having listen to the conversation. "Hurry back, I still expect you to help me later," Michi's father, Miruko, commented understandingly.

Michi nodded as he began to show Sai the way to the infirmary tent for the sick and injured. They walked side by side as Michi looked seriously down at the ground.

"I'm supposing you heard what happened to the village?" Michi questioned, deadpan.

"Only the main details. Pein had attacked. Tsunade is in a coma. Naruto had saved the day. People had died and were resurrected," Sai mentioned briefly, his eyes keenly watching Michi for any information.

"Yea… that's the most of it," Michi stated, sadly.

"Why is Saryie in the infirmary?" Sai asked, bluntly.

"Well… I'll let her tell you the story but she's in there until the medics say her stab wound heals properly with the stitches and stuff," Michi expressed with a sigh. "As you can imagine Saryie is itching to get out and start helping the Village and all that."

"Does sound like her," Sai mentioned softly.

Once they arrived at one of the tents for the wounded, Michi escorted him in and maneuvered through medics and patients on cots till they arrived at a very grumpy looking Saryie. She was half laying in a white medical cot, with her arms half folded in front of her. She was in a simple black tee and had bandages wrapped around her head with her hair down.

"Hey grumpy face, I brought you a surprise," Michi called, gaining Saryie's attention and a few others.

The other patients soon realized who Michi was talking to and tried to mind their own business. Saryie looked over at the familiar voice of her teammate and her eyebrows raised suddenly at seeing Sai beside him. Her face instantly lit up and Sai briefly felt his body starting to relax for the first time since he got to Konoha. The tightness in his chest that he had felt upon seeing her vanished as he saw that she looked well despite her gloomily disposition.

Sai smiled awkwardly in greeting as Michi announced he couldn't stay and told Saryie he would see her later. Saryie understood and watched as Michi left to give them privacy as she grew in excitement to see Sai there. She beckoned Sai forward and Sai stepped hesitantly to her side.

His smile had dropped from his features as he stared down blankly at Saryie.

"Hey come here, you're back early from your mission. Did it go smoothly?" Saryie questioned in a rush and reached for Sai, grabbing his hand. "You can have a seat if you like," Saryie stated, nudging his hand.

Sai hesitantly sat on the side of Saryie's cot as he looked her over, more heavily with his eyes. "I was called back early from my mission because of the state of Konoha at the moment," Sai answered evenly.

"Oh, yea… I bet this must be a shock for you," Saryie stated softly, laughing slightly to ease the tension.

"What happened to you?" Sai asked, bluntly.

"Well…" Saryie started as she told Sai every little thing that happened during Pein's attack. She told him about the start of the attack and the chaos that unfolded. She told him about her and Michi's demise. The more Saryie began to unfold in front of Sai, the tenser Saryie noticed Sai was becoming. His eyes darkened as she told him that she was captured and had briefly died by the Human Path's hands.

She then told him the next thing she knew, she had her soul placed within her again and was able to breath. That Azumi stood over her, concerned as she quickly put pressure on the wound Saryie had sustained to her shoulder as it began to bleed again. Michi was able to regain his senses eventually too and came over to help Azumi. Michi hadn't suffered any bodily harm unlike Saryie.

Azumi had mentioned the wound wasn't life threatening but that she would need medical attention. One of the medics were able to patch her up and her teammates stayed with her until they were informed to take her here. The medics wanted to keep an eye on her head and stitches and were persistent in keeping her here.

Sai could tell Saryie wasn't happy to be sitting around, but his thoughts were more focused on her wellbeing as she continued. Saryie mentioned how her parents and brother were safe. That their farm suffered no damage from the Pein's attack, that it was a good thing they lived outside of Konoha's walls. Saryie told Sai about how they had came to visit her… that they made frequent trips into the village. Her father helped to supply food from the crops he harvested to others and her mother had paid her a visit with Nao.

Saryie's face was grim as she relayed the information. Saryie said how she could tell her mom was torn. That her mother was sad to see her there but was also relieved that she was okay. Nao had hugged her and was happy she was alive. They didn't visit for long with her but they had managed to visit almost every day to check on Saryie. Saryie could tell it hurt her mother to do so. Saryie looked sad as she told Sai this.

Sai listened patiently, a sudden burning sensation was rising up in his belly, along with other feelings he wasn't quite able to decipher. He was glad she was ok… but she had died…. She was gone at a point in time. He felt his chest seize up at the thought as Saryie mentioned how Kakashi, Sakura, Lee, Kiba and Gai all came to visit her as well within the last four days.

As Saryie came to the end of her tale and synopsis of the last few days, her tone slowly faded off. She tilted her head at Sai as she tried to read his face. He was no longer looking at her but at the floor.

"What's on your mind," Saryie asked, softly, raising an eyebrow.

"You had died," Sai mentioned after a moment.

Saryie could see how Sai's eyes narrowed as they move slightly from side to side as if he were trying to figure something out.

Saryie squeezed Sai's hand that was still held in hers on her cot. She gently smiled as she saw Sai's eyes rest on her face and then on her hand in his.

"I'm here now, and that's all that matters," Saryie mentioned, with a warm smile.

"Why didn't you retreat when you had the chance when Michi set off the explosives underground?" Sai questioned, his tone sounding odd.

Saryie looked confusingly at Sai. "What do you mean? It wasn't an option. The Hidden Leaf Village was under attack! I had to do everything I could," Saryie stated, firmly.

"You did everything and you lost," Sai stated grave, his eyes staring once more at the ground.

"Hey… Look at me," Saryie stated, evenly. There was a fierceness in her eyes as Sai obediently obliged. He took in her face as if engraving it into his mind.

"It is better to have failed, than to be a coward. I had died, but in the Shinobi world it's a risk we all take when we go out on missions. I tried to protect my village, my comrades, my family, and my friends. I risked it all to protect them, because I love them!" Saryie declared, her eyes boring into Sai's as her voice had risen with passion.

Saryie saw the wavering in Sai's eyes as his composure broke away briefly to unveil a look Saryie had never seen before on his face. He looked rather distressed and upset.

Saryie's eyes softened as she saw his barrier fade away, but before she could say anything more, Sai had stepped away from her. She saw him recompose himself skillfully as his eyes looked to be turning black before he turned away from her. She wasn't able to stop him as he quickly departed from her with a few quick hand signs before poofing away.

He left Saryie concerned with many questions running through her head.

* * *

 **DUN DUN DUN**

 **The end.**

 **Seriously, I'm leaving it there. Why? Because I wanted to be evil.**

 **Lul, no. It's just that there's a lot more things that are going to start happening as I integrated my characters more into the current Naruto plot with the war and stuff. So I wanted to end this part of Sai and Saryie's story here before I start drifting off talking about the war.**

 **I didn't want this story to be more than 40 chapters and it looks like I got my wish. I'm so glad this turned out better than I thought it would.**

 **I am so proud of myself for finishing and writing this story so quickly. It took me less than a year to write all of this when I use to take like a year to update my other naruto story. I think writing 3 chapters to 4 chapters ahead of your current story, really helps. It puts you on a schedule and you get to see where the story is going faster so you can tweak stuff in previous chapters if you need to.**

 **I really appreciated any reviews I got on this story and about my own characters. I want to say thanks to you for sharing your opinions. I hope all my readers enjoyed this part of the story. And please feel free to submit more thoughts on the story, whether you like it or not.**

 **Also I am planning on making a Sequel to this story. To obviously talk about the war and I have a few other missions I'mma have Sai and Saryie go on before the war. Plus, Team H still has to perfect their defense jutsu.**

 **So yea. The Sequel will have a similar title… like Sharing Emotions or Expressing Emotions or Experiencing Emotions… something to that effect. Let me know what you think. PM or reviews always welcome. I plan to start writing the sequel slowly so I can start to post it in December.**

 **Thank you so much!**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

 **I do own Saryie, Michi, and Azumi… as well as Michi's family: Miyu, Miruko, Airi, Aoi, Michi's mother; Isamu (Azumi's father); Hoshiro (Saryie's father), Nao (Saryie's brother)… and many side characters… like Nago, Oton, Yuri, Cho, Woo, Po, Kai, Nali, Shui, Rye, Theo, Reni….**

Be sure to check out my drawings of each of the characters I created on my deviantart if you like!


	37. AN

**A/N:**

Hello Readers and Followers,

I just wanted to inform you that I have started the sequel to Stirring Emotions, called Sharing Emotions, and have chapter 1 posted so go check it out! :)

Thank you to all those who have been patient with me and that have reviewed/favorite/followed this story.

And please continue giving me any input that you have.

~~~ Simplegirl42


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